Passionate Steward - 10th Anniversary Edition

Recovering Christian Stewardship from Secular Fundraising 93
Consider the chart “Distribution of Charitable Giving By
Income Levels (U.S.)” for 1995, 1997 and 1999. 43 Clearly, it is
middle income Americans (those making between $30,000 and
$75,000) who provide the vast majority of philanthropic dollars.
However, during the 1990s, despite the longest period of economic
growth in American history, this same group registered a 10%
decline in their share of the total raised (from 56% to 46%).
Distribution of Charitable Giving By Income Levels (U.S.)
Adjusted Gross Income 1995 1997 1999 Trend
Under $20,000 1% 5% 7%
$20,000 – $30,000 13% 8% 7%
$30,000 – $50,000 26% 23% 20%
$50,000 – $75,000 30% 28% 26%
$75,000 – $100,000 14% 17% 17% ➔
$100,000 – $200,000 12% 14% 17%
$200,000 – Over 4% 5% 6%
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By contrast, those earning between $75,000 and $200,000
increased their share of the total donated to charity. Moreover, by
1999, the very wealthiest Americans accounted for 6% of total
givings, whereas they had contributed only 4% of the total in 1995.
Given that those in the highest income brackets comprise a much
smaller pool of donors than low and middle income earners, these
increases are pointed evidence of fundraisers’ growing emphasis on
major gifts—gifts, that is, which are only within the reach of the
wealthy. Major gift campaigns are causing a shift in the patterns of
43 “Statistics of Income Bulletin, Spring 1997, 1999, 2001” (Washington, D.C.:
Internal Revenue Service, 2001).