Idaho ranked No. 17 in average charitable giving

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Idaho residents who took itemized deductions for charitable deductions on their federal income tax forms in 2016 donated $6,983 on average, according to an analysis released this month by the Washington-based Tax Foundation.  

That amount was the 17th highest in the foundation’s ranking of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Nationwide, 37 million taxpayers took such deductions. 

Charitable deductions taken in 2016 in Idaho numbered 173,440, amounting to a total of $1.2 billion, according to the analysis.

The federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which was signed into law in 2017, increased the standard deduction, meaning fewer households in the future will benefit from itemizing donations to charities.

“As millions fewer households will itemize going forward, we should expect forthcoming IRS data to show fewer charitable contribution deductions,” Erica York, a Tax Foundation analyst, said in a post on the foundation’s website.

The effects on overall charitable giving, however, are uncertain, York said, because many households give to charities for reasons that are not tax-related.

Americans who took itemized deductions for charitable contributions in 2016 gave $236 billion in total, which works out to an average of $6,349 among those who took such deductions, according to the analysis.

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How States Rank on Charitable Giving

Rank

State

Number of Charitable Deductions

 Amount of Charitable Deductions (in millions)

Average Charitable Deduction

1

Wyoming

41,690

$542

$12,991

2

Arkansas

224,470

$2,455

$10,935

3

Utah

401,590

$4,082

$10,165

4

South Dakota

58,100

$582

$10,020

5

Tennessee

504,460

$4,361

$8,644

6

Washington

855,110

$7,166

$8,381

7

Georgia

1,261,830

$10,151

$8,045

8

D.C.

113,460

$912

$8,039

9

Oklahoma

305,930

$2,440

$7,975

10

Alabama

470,090

$3,546

$7,543

11

North Dakota

49,420

$365

$7,382

12

Texas

2,275,810

$16,691

$7,334

13

Mississippi

250,380

$1,786

$7,135

14

California

5,154,350

$36,634

$7,107

15

Florida

1,854,220

$13,087

$7,058

16

New York

2,784,390

$19,583

$7,033

17

Idaho

173,440

$1,211

$6,983

18

Kansas

281,250

$1,952

$6,942

19

Louisiana

374,240

$2,487

$6,646

20

Missouri

595,180

$3,850

$6,469

21

South Carolina

523,990

$3,377

$6,444

22

Indiana

570,380

$3,487

$6,113

23

North Carolina

1,127,090

$6,881

$6,105

24

Nevada

292,780

$1,771

$6,049

25

Colorado

713,080

$4,269

$5,986

26

Nebraska

209,070

$1,243

$5,946

27

Massachusetts

1,048,220

$6,093

$5,813

28

Illinois

1,595,330

$9,240

$5,792

29

Alaska

57,090

$327

$5,730

30

Montana

112,060

$629

$5,609

31

Virginia

1,212,690

$6,717

$5,539

32

Connecticut

607,150

$3,319

$5,467

33

Kentucky

407,570

$2,198

$5,392

34

Michigan

1,064,400

$5,712

$5,367

35

Maryland

1,143,160

$5,999

$5,248

36

West Virginia

95,190

$499

$5,244

37

New Mexico

159,060

$814

$5,121

38

Arizona

729,580

$3,701

$5,073

39

Pennsylvania

1,454,530

$7,333

$5,042

40

Ohio

1,146,570

$5,778

$5,039

41

Oregon

556,740

$2,747

$4,935

42

Minnesota

811,520

$3,947

$4,864

43

Iowa

351,620

$1,694

$4,818

44

New Hampshire

170,560

$807

$4,731

45

Vermont

65,610

$302

$4,609

46

Delaware

122,180

$558

$4,565

47

Wisconsin

715,510

$3,142

$4,391

48

New Jersey

1,547,390

$6,694

$4,326

49

Hawaii

163,170

$671

$4,112

50

Maine

135,170

$492

$3,643

51

Rhode Island

145,120

$487

$3,354

Source: Tax Foundation and Internal Revenue Service statistics

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