Charitable Giving was steady last year, as employment and the economy stabilized Americans gave an estimated $240.72 billion in ‘03, slightly up from the previous year, according to Giving U.S.A. Estimated giving in ‘03 equaled roughly 2.2% of the nation’s GDP, the 5th year since ’71 that it exceeded 2% of the total output of goods and services. The increase was about equal to that from ‘01 to ‘02. Charities have come under intense scrutiny by the news media and the public over the last two years, and some nonprofit leaders suspect that has discouraged giving. The sector continues to struggle in part because the number of charities continues to rise at a faster pace than charitable giving. The IRS grants tax exemption to an average of 83 nonprofit groups a day. (NY Times 6/22/04)
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