Marion's Middle Income Residents Donate More Than Wealthier Neighbors

A new study by The Chronicle of Philanthropy charts America's charitable donation habits and has shed new light on how much Marion residents give.

The six-month-long study of data and on-the-ground reporting, "How America Gives," ranked the generosity of the 50 states and every zip code in America.

Marion

Marion ranks high on the total amount of charitable donations, placing 1,459 out of the 11,522 cities surveyed in the study. But that might be due to Marion's higher than average median discretionary income, which is $57,000; ranked No. 3,439 out of 11,522 cities.

But Marion falls off the top percentile when you measure the donations relative to our residents' income. Marion residents donate 4 percent of their income on average, which places us 6,628 of 11,522 communities.

More surprisingly, it seems that medium income Marion residents donate a greater percentage of their income than the wealthy. Those that bring in between $50,000 to $99,999 donate 4.3 percent of their discretionary income, while those that $200,000 and up donate less, approximately 3.5 percent of their income.

Neighbors

But how does Marion compare to Cedar Rapids, Hiawatha or Robins?

Well, Robins actually places highest on every category, beating us all to smithereens.

• Robins gives the greatest percentage of their income: 4.6 percent
• Robins has the highest amount of median discretionary income at $73,762
• Robins gives the largest percentage of their income: $3,415

Iowa

The study found that giving often depends on politics and policies. In Iowa, for example, individuals and businesses contributing community foundation endowments can use 25 percent of the gift to offset state taxes. Still, Iowa ranked 33rd in 51 states and territories.

People and businesses in Iowa contributing to community foundation endowments can use 25 percent of the gift to offset state taxes. The combination of the credit and the federal charitable tax deduction means that someone in the highest tax bracket would pay just 40 cents for every donated dollar.

Total contributions in Iowa were $1 billion, with a median contribution of $2,190 or 3.9 percent of people's incomes. While Ames is above the national average, Iowa as a whole falls below national averages, which are a median contribution of $2,564 or 4.7 percent of people's incomes.

National Findings

Among the major findings of the study:

• The most generous residents are in the Deep South. The stingiest are in New England states.
• Residents in middle-class neighborhoods give a higher percentage of their discretionary income annually than do residents in affluent neighborhoods.
• Nonprofits and charities are pressured s government budgets shrink, and more individuals nationwide are digging deeper into their own pockets to help their neighbors.
• Utah is the most generous state, while New Hampshire is the stingiest.
• Salt Lake City tops the cities list – largely a sign of the power of Mormon tithing rules.
• Providence, RI, is rock bottom – likely a result of high unemployment and dwindling industry.
• Rich people who live in wealthy, relatively homogeneous enclaves (think Newton, MA) give a smaller share of their incomes to charity than rich people who live in diverse communities (Cambridge, MA).
• People who live in politically conservative, "red states" are more generous than those in liberal or "blue states."

The study is based on exact dollar amounts released by the Internal Revenue Service showing the value of charitable deductions claimed by American taxpayers.