Who purchases Giving USA? And why should I purchase it?
Giving USA: The Annual Report on Philanthropy is the seminal publication reporting on the sources and uses of charitable giving in the United States. For 57 years, fundraisers, nonprofit leaders, donors and volunteers, scholars, and other individuals who work in or with the charitable sector have counted on Giving USA to provide the most comprehensive charitable giving data available. No other source provides the context for annual giving like Giving USA.
Subscribers to Giving USA research include heads and staff of nonprofit organizations, chief development officers, advisors to individuals, corporations, and foundations, and libraries, to name a few. Scholars researching philanthropy and the nonprofit sector at both the undergraduate and graduate levels also find Giving USA to be an invaluable tool. Faculty members teaching about the nonprofit sector in the United States often assign Giving USA in their classes. International researchers use Giving USA to develop comparative data.
How can I use Giving USA?
Here are just a few of the myriad ways you can use our reports:
If you are with a nonprofit organization:
- Train board members
- Respond to media inquiries
- Track reports about similar types of charities
If you are a donor (individual, corporation, or foundation):
- Assist board of directors/family members in setting strategy
- Help in identifying funding gaps
- Learn about events and trends nationally, all in one place
If you are a scholar, government agency, or a member of the media:
- Evaluate the importance of charitable giving to the social fabric of our country
- Data and trend analysis are used to prepare reports, speeches, and news articles
- Use Giving USA material in the classroom to teach about current trends in charitable giving, as well as
- historical trends.
Who produces Giving USA?
Giving USA is published by Giving USA Foundation™, which is located in Chicago, Illinois. The report has been published annually since 1956 by either the Foundation or its founding organization, the former American Association of Fundraising Counsel (now The Giving InstituteTM). Since 2001, the report has been researched and written by Indiana University School of Philanthropy, and since 2010, the School has managed all aspects of Giving USA reports.
Data Questions
How do I know the data is reliable?
For decades, Giving USA has benefited from the counsel and oversight of its Advisory Council on Methodology (ACM), which is composed of leading scholars of charitable giving in the United States and practitioners across the nonprofit sector. In 2012, there are 19 members on the ACM who represent donor-focused organizations such as the Foundation Center and the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy; recipient-focused organizations like Americans for the Arts, National Human Services Assembly, and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education; and research and academic institutions such as Independent Sector, Indiana University, and the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.
The methodologies used in Giving USA are tested periodically for reliability and accuracy. The School of Philanthropy hires independent econometricians and other experts to test the methodologies used in Giving USA. Any changes in methodologies or data used within the econometric models must be reviewed and approved by the ACM.
What sources of charitable dollars do you examine?
Giving USA examines giving by individuals (households), corporations, foundations, and estates (bequests).
What about government donations to nonprofits?
Giving USA has never looked at government donations to nonprofits. However, government giving is a huge component of the total revenues that support nonprofits’ charitable work. Much of the government support is in the form of payments for services such as medical care; contracts for specific services, such as to human services organizations; and research funding to universities working in medicine, science, and the humanities.
What recipients of giving do you examine? Do they always equal the sources side of the giving “pie”?
- Religion
- Education
- Environment/animals
- Arts, culture, and humanities
- Independent, community, and operating foundations
- Public-society benefit
- Health
- Human services
- International affairs
There is always a pie slice labeled “unallocated” to capture giving that cannot be tracked through any of our methods. The size of this pie slice varies annually, but is seldom larger than 10 percent of the total.
Is all giving to faith-based organizations found in giving to religion?
No. Donations to the Salvation Army, for example, can be found in the human services subsector. Donations are categorized by purpose or main activity of the organization. Thus, Lutheran Family Services is categorized as a human services organization; St. Elizabeth’s Hospital is in the health subsector; and Jewish Theological Seminary is in the education subsector. In categorizing recipient organizations, Giving USA largely follows the National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities (NTEE) coding system, developed by the Urban Institute’s National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS). For more information, visit: http://nccs.urban.org/statistics/index.cfm
What about groups like the United Nations that provide services across categories of recipients?
United Nations and all of its related programs, UNICEF, UN Development Programme, and others, are coded in international affairs, as all of its work is focused on international aid, understanding, or relations. Some organizations, such as freestanding donor-advised funds (like Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund and National Christian Foundation) collect donations and then redistribute them to another charity. These types of organizations are in the public-society benefit subsector, unless they distribute to organizations in other countries (Give2Asia is one example). In that case, the organization is coded as an international affairs organization.
I thought Giving USA surveyed charities about donations they received—has that changed?
Yes, several years ago. Giving USA researchers gained access to the IRS Forms 990 filed by charities, which gave us much more information than our surveys ever could. While the survey method was state-of-the-art for decades, when data on the Forms 990 became available, we made the switch.
Can Giving USA provide a breakdown of giving by age, gender, race, etc.?
No, Giving USA only looks at aggregate giving data. However, the School of Philanthropy can provide that level of data through its Center on Philanthropy Panel Study (COPPS) reports and other studies. Visit www.philanthropy.iupui.edu/research for more information about these valuable resources.
I want to know how much was donated in my metro area. Will Giving USA tell me that level of information?
No, Giving USA provides an annual, national snapshot of giving. However, working with The Center on Philanthropy, groups in various cities around the country have produced their own versions of Giving USA. Recent examples include giving in Atlanta, Memphis, and Kansas City. These reports are not done annually, however. Visit www.philanthropy.iupui.edu/research for more information about these valuable resources.
Isn’t Giving USA just a big book of statistics?
Giving USA provides much more than statistics on giving. Interpretations of each category of giving are provided, along with recommendations for action provided by experts in the field, particularly members of The Giving Institute. The report also provides 40 years of trend data for giving by source and use, as well as analysis of giving compared with various economic indicators.
Product Questions
How many different products are available for purchase?
- The Giving USA: Annual Report on Philanthropy for the year 2011 (about 300 pages), also called the Full Report
- The Executive Summary: An excerpt from the Full Report, which is about 35 pages
- Power Point Presentation of Giving USA’s data for the year 2011, which includes about 80 slides of graphs and supplemental text
- Giving USA’s Graph Pack: A Power Point that includes 8 of Giving USA’s most popular graphs for use in presentations
- Giving USA Spotlights: Research reports on important topics related to the charitable subsector, issued four times per year. Topics vary. Spotlights can be purchased separately or as a yearly subscription for a reduced price
- Data Tables: 40 years’ worth of Giving USA’s data on giving by source and use in current and inflation-adjusted dollars, as well as data found in Giving USA’s graphs on total giving and GDP, corporate giving as a percentage of corporate pre-tax profits, and individual giving as a percentage of Disposable Personal Income. This is provided as a table in pdf format.
What is the difference between buying the full report and receiving the Executive Summary for free?
The Giving USA: Annual Report on Philanthropy is about 300 pages in length (also called the “full report”). The report in its entirety takes a comprehensive look at the trends in U.S. charitable giving by source and type of recipient for the year being estimated, as well as a comparison of historical trends. The report includes the full “Numbers” section on charitable giving trends; chapters on giving by each source and use; a chapter on current legal and legislative issues in the charitable sector; data tables; a methodology section; and other materials.
The free Executive Summary has about 20 pages of data provided in the Full Report, including Giving USA’s pie charts and total giving graphs.
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on the digital version of the report on the top right. The digital
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Why can't I access my old purchases? Why is my username unrecognized?
When Giving USA's new website launched on June 19, 2012, prior user
information did not transfer from the old site. You will need to create a
completely new user account. In May 2012, all Giving USA customers
since 2012 were notified that they would need to save all previously
purchased reports and presentations prior to June 1, 2012 in preparation
for the website launch. If you did not and you want access to your
previously purchased products, please contact cphlgusa@iupui.edu.
Product delivery and accessibility:
Giving USA Full Report
After payment you will be automatically directed to a link from which
to access the report. To navigate back to the link, log in and click
“View Receipt” under My Account.
The Full Report is available to be printed or saved to your desktop. To
save a copy to your desktop, you must download and install Adobe AIR. If
you have difficulty doing this, scroll to the bottom of the page for a
link to download a PDF version.
Giving USA Executive Summary
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to access the Executive Summary. To navigate back to the link, log in
and click “View Receipt” under My Account.
The Executive Summary is only available to print. You may only access
the Executive summary via your personal account and may not distribute
it to others.
Giving USA 2012 PowerPoint Presentation
After payment you will be automatically directed to a link from which
to download the PowerPoint. To navigate back to the link, log in and
click “View Receipt” under My Account or click on the “Digital Goods”
link to the right of your receipt list for a list of your downloadable
purchases.
The PowerPoint Presentation is only available to download 5 times. Please save it to your computer.
Giving USA 2012 Graph Pack
After payment you will be automatically directed to a link from which
to download the Graph Pack. To navigate back to the link, log in and
click “View Receipt” under My Account or click on the “Digital Goods”
link to the right of your receipt list for a list of your downloadable
purchases.
The Graph Pack is only available to download 5 times. Please save it to your computer.
Giving USA 2012 Data Tables
After payment you will be automatically directed to a link from which
to download the Data Tables. To navigate back to the link, log in and
click “View Receipt” under My Account or click on the “Digital Goods”
link to the right of your receipt list for a list of your downloadable
purchases.
The Data Tables are only available to download 5 times. Please save them to your computer.