--- title: Trump's Tax Law Has Made Americans Less Generous, Charities Say description: Americans gave less money to charities last year partly because the Republican tax law changes made many people ineligible for tax breaks. canonical: https://time.com/5609173/americans-giving-to-charity-trump-tax-law/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-06-18T16:01:33.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:52:45.181Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump's Tax Law Has Made Americans Less Generous, Charities Say og:description: Giving reportedly fell around 3.4%, after adjusting for inflation, last year og:url: https://time.com/5609173/americans-giving-to-charity-trump-tax-law/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfda4bbca7e46f189/69894b5f929fade369bf35c4/trump-tax-law-charities-down.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: U.S. Is Giving Less to Charities Because of Trump's Tax Law og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump's Tax Law Has Made Americans Less Generous, Charities Say twitter:description: Giving reportedly fell around 3.4%, after adjusting for inflation, last year twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfda4bbca7e46f189/69894b5f929fade369bf35c4/trump-tax-law-charities-down.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # President Trump's Tax Law Has Made Americans Less Generous, Charities Say > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=f7afac36-0a2a-4c86-8a3d-71cdd0ad7db8&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: President Trump Signs The GOP Tax Bill Into Law [Watch (HLS stream): President Trump Signs The GOP Tax Bill Into Law](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/3iWi0gjT.m3u8) (2:02)  _Published 2017-12-22. President Donald Trump has signed into law a $1.5 trillion tax overhaul package._ by [Laura Davison / Bloomberg](https://time.com/author/bloomberg/) ## Laura Davison / Bloomberg Contributor Jun 18, 2019 4:01 PM UTC  U.S. President Donald Trump speaks about expanding healthcare coverage for small businesses in the Rose Garden of the White House on June 14, 2019 in Washington, D.C. U.S. President Donald Trump speaks about expanding healthcare coverage for small businesses in the Rose Garden of the White House on June 14, 2019 in Washington, D.C. Mark Wilson—Getty Images by [Laura Davison / Bloomberg](https://time.com/author/bloomberg/) ## Laura Davison / Bloomberg Contributor Jun 18, 2019 4:01 PM UTC (Bloomberg) — Americans gave less money to charities last year partly because the Republican tax law changes made many people ineligible for tax breaks that can inspire donations. Giving by individuals fell an estimated 3.4%, after adjusting for inflation, last year, according to a report released Tuesday by Giving USA. The numbers reflect the first year of the 2017 tax overhaul that expanded the standard deduction, a simpler way of filing taxes, but also excluded millions of taxpayers from claiming a tax break for donating to charity. Total estimated giving, by corporations, foundations, as well as individuals, fell about 1.7%, after inflation, to $427.7 billion. Individuals account for more than two-thirds of all charitable giving. Increases in donations from corporations and foundations helped offset some of the losses from individuals. “The environment for giving in 2018 was far more complex than most years, with shifts in tax policy and the volatility of the stock market,” Rick Dunham, chair of Giving USA Foundation, said in a press release. The report is based on data provided by donors, fund-raisers and non-profits. The 2017 tax law nearly doubled the standard deduction to $24,000 for a couple. That change meant it was more advantageous for millions of taxpayers to file using the lump sum deduction, rather than tallying up all their tax breaks from mortgage interest payments, state and local taxes and charitable gifts. Only about 18 million taxpayers itemized in 2018 down from 46.5 million the year before, according to estimates from the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation. About 88% of filers last year took the standard deduction, which means they couldn’t write off their donations. Religious congregations are likely to be among the most affected by the decline of individual contributions because most of their donors are also members of the church, synagogue or mosque. Congregations also don’t receive donations from corporations or foundations, Una Osili, an associate associate dean at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University, said in a call with reporters. Some nonprofits predicted that contributions could decrease substantially following the tax law changes, but the most recent data don’t show the most dire estimates coming to fruition. Republicans and Democrats have both contemplated making the charitable contribution deduction an “above the line” tax break, meaning that taxpayers can claim it regardless of whether they itemize or not. Such a change, however, is unlikely to pass in the near future. That change could cost as much as $515 billion over a decade, according to estimates from the Tax Foundation. ## Transcript So I'll sign this today rather having a very big formal ceremony in two weeks when we were going to do it. Because I didn't want you folks to say that I wasn't keeping my promise. I am keeping my promise. I am signing it before Christmas. I said that the bill would be on my desk before Christmas. And you are holding me literally to that. So we did a rush job today. It's not fancy, but it's the oval office. It's the great oval office. And just to conclude, our country's doing very well. We've tremendously cut regulations. Legislative approvals For which I'm given no credit in the main stream media, we have, I believe it's 88, which is number one in the history of our country. Second now, is Harry Truman. Harry Truman had more legislative approvals than any other president and a record long held. And we beat him on legislative approvals, for which I get no credit. A lot of people say he needed this because he has had no legislative approvals. Well if you look at VA Accountability Act and so many other bills having to do with the VA. Having to do with the military, having to do with many things. We have more legislative victories. Than any other president, not including this. But this is the capper, because this is, again, the biggest tax cut, biggest reform of all time. So it's an honor to have you with us, and we will sign this right now. This is something I'm very proud of, great for our country, great for the American people. Thank you all. [ BLANK_AUDIO ] So, we won't do the whole thing, but this is basically what it is. That's your bill. 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