Fund Raisers Predict Stable Giving Season

By Peter Panepento

The fund-raising climate in the United States is a bit cloudier than it was six months ago, but nonprofit leaders are nonetheless optimistic about their prospects in the coming months, according to the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University's Philanthropic Giving Index.

The index, which is conducted every six months, asks American nonprofit executives and fund-raising consultants to gauge the country's charitable giving climate. Like the U.S. consumer confidence index, the Indiana University index uses a scale of 0 to 100.

The latest figures, released this week, showed an overall index of 87.6 — down 1.4 percent from six months ago. The index is up 1.6 percent over December 2005, the survey found.

"Fund raisers are reporting a fairly stable giving environment," says Patrick M. Rooney, director of research for the Center on Philanthropy. "The result will likely be a year-end giving season that is similar to last year," he says.

Predictably, the economy is coloring fund-raisers' expectations. Nearly one half of those who responded to the survey said the economy was having a positive impact on giving. About 30 percent said the economy was hurting giving.

The survey also asked the 168 respondents about the effectiveness of new federal tax rules that offer tax incentives to people 70 1/2 and older who donate money to charities directly from their individual retirement accounts. Those older donors can contribute up to $100,000 per year tax-free to charities.

Nearly 88 percent of the fund raisers surveyed said they were aware of the new provision. More than half — 58.2 percent — said they have a strategy for using the IRA incentives in their fund-raising efforts.

But while the majority of those surveyed are promoting the new IRA break, few have been able to garner any gifts since the new law was passed. Only about one in five fund raisers — 21.8 percent — surveyed say they have had success with IRA gifts since the provision was created in August. One third of fund raisers said they had not received any gifts,

"The IRA charitable rollover provision is a new giving option, and it will take time for donors to become aware of it and to be comfortable using it," said Eugene R. Tempel, the center's executive director. "Many human-services organizations, especially smaller ones, have smaller, less comprehensive fund-raising operations and are less likely to be connected to large umbrella groups that help the nonprofit respond quickly to new fund-raising opportunities."

For more about the report, go to the center's Web site