CBO report weighs changing charitable tax deduction

The Congressional Budget Office released a report on May 24 examining the implications of potential changes to the tax treatment of charitable giving. The report estimates the effect of 11 options on both charitable giving and federal revenue.

The key characteristics of the options are whether the tax benefit requires a minimum amount of donations; whether it is restricted to itemizers or is available to all taxpayers; and whether it takes the form of a deduction or a credit.

While the report has some important methodological limitations, it represents a step forward in understanding the potential impact of some of the proposed alternatives to the current charitable tax deduction. Learn more about how you can help preserve tax incentives for charitable giving.