A new study of wealthy tax filers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia has found that Utah donors give the most money to charities relative to their financial means. The list of states shows that South Dakota and Mississippi residents ranked second and third nationally in terms of generosity.
The "Affordable Donations by State - 1999" study is by the San Francisco-based Newtithing Group, which analyzed charitable contributions of those earning $200,000 or more.
The study showed that donations of the 9,804 wealthy filers in Utah averaged $42,061 to charities, and these same people are giving the most relative to their financial status out of the 50 states and D.C.
Newtithing reports there are relatively few filers averaging incomes of $200,000 or more in sparsely populated regions like the Rocky Mountains and the Midwest. In those areas, giving tends to be closer to full capacity.
South Dakota had 2,950 filers in the income bracket, and ranked second on the list with 45.93 percent of capacity. Mississippi was third, with 8,606 filers giving at 37.45 percent of capacity.
States with higher number of filers earning $200,000 or more gave less relative to financial means. California had 248,515 such filers, but ranked 28th with 24.66 percent of giving capacity. Texas ranked 31st, with 117,000 wealthy filers giving at 23.97 percent of capacity.
Delaware ranked last with 4,865 wealthy filers giving at 9.05 percent of capacity.
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http://www.newtithing.org/content/state.fact.html
