Leisure Time in Our Community - Helping The Less Fortunate

The chart shows the percentage of households that gave to charity — and the percentage of adults who volunteered during the 1987 to 2000 period. In 2000, 89% of households gave to charity. Of these the average household gave $1,620 — up from a figure of $1,075 contributed in 1998. Forty-four percent of the adult population volunteered in 2000, lower than the participation rate in 1998, which was 55.5%. Some 25.5 million volunteers disappeared in just two years: 109.4 million volunteered in 1998, 83.9 million in 2000. Why the sudden jump in contributions, the decline in volunteering?

During the 1987 to1998 period, the survey producing these data included those aged 18 to 20. Beginning in 2000, only those 21 and older were included. Thus the earlier data and 2000 data are not directly comparable. But the shift indicates, indirectly, the role that younger people play. They seem to give less but to volunteer more. Of course, the increase in contributions and the drop in volunteers may not entirely be due to this shift in survey methodology.

Overall, more of us are donating, and we're giving more. Are we contributing equally based on our income? The table on the next page provides some answers. Although those in the higher income bracket give the most money, it's those in the lowest brackets who contribute the highest percentage of their income to the needy. The exception to this was in 1993. In that year those earning $100,000 and over contributed 0.5% more of their income than those earning under $10,000. But from 1995 to 1998, those in the top two income brackets gave less of their income to charity, those in the two lowest brackets more.

In 1998, those earning under $10,000 gave an average of 3% more of their income than those earning $100,000 or more.

Amount Given by All Contributing Households, 1991-1998

Household income	Average dollar amount given							Percent of household income
		1991	1993	1995	1998	1991	1993	1995	1998
Under $10,000	239	207	295	329	3.6	2.7	4.3	5.2
$10,000-$19,999	507	332	425	495	3.4	2.3	2.8	3.3
$20,000-$29,000	617	668	578	552	2.5	2.7	2.3	2.2
$30,000-$39,999	640	715	722	734	1.8	2.0	2.1	2.1
$40,000-$49,000	1,038	572	576	951	2.3	1.3	1.3	2.1
$50,000-$59,999	1,293	632	1,001	1,041	2.4	1.1	1.8	1.9
$60,000-$74,999	1,180	1,572	1,301	1,696	1.7	2.3	1.9	2.6
$75,000-$99,999	1,666	1,720	1,582	1,394	1.9	2.0	1.8	1.6
$100,000 and over	2,450	3,213	3,379	2,550	2.5	3.2	3.4	2.2

How did we make our contributions? In 1998, 84% of households reported giving contributions of food or clothing. Around 80% purchased goods or services from charitable organizations and gave cash or checks. And, despite the growing popularity of the Internet, only 1.2% of 1998 contributions was made online. This rose to 2% in 2000. But, of those with Internet access, 13% used the Internet to research charitable organizations in 2000. And, of those, 12% made a donation online.

Who's volunteering? In 1998, the typical volunteer was a white woman, between the ages of 35 and 54, with at least some college education and an income level between $60,000 and $74,999. Has this picture changed over time? In the next panel we look at gender differences in volunteering.

Sources: Chart data (1987-1998), household contribution data and Internet giving data, 1998: Giving and Volunteering in the United States, 1999: Key Findings, Washington D.C.: INDEPENDENT SECTOR, 2000. Retrieved October 3, 2001 from http://www.indepsec.org/GandV. Chart data, household contribution, and Internet giving data, 2000: Giving and Volunteering in the United States, 2001: Key Findings, Washington D.C.: INDEPENDENT SECTOR, 2002. Retrieved February 6, 2002 from http://www.independentsector.org/PDFs/GV01keyfind.pdf. U.S. Census Bureau. Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1994, 1996, 1999 and 2000.