Show your Support for the Charitable Act

By Laura Walling, Senior Director of Government Relations, Goodwill Industries International

Senators James Lankford (R-OK), Chris Coons (D-DE), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Raphael Warnock (R-GA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Gary Peters (D-MI), Tim Scott (R-SC), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) introduced The Charitable Act to expand and extend the expired non-itemized deduction for charitable giving that would ensure Americans who donate to charities including Goodwill, religious organizations, and other nonprofits are able to deduct that donation from their federal taxes at a higher level than the previous $300 deduction.

Specifically, the bill would make available to taxpayers, who do not itemize on their tax return, a below-the-line deduction for charitable giving on federal income taxes valued at up to one-third of the standard deduction (around $4,500 for an individual filer and around $9,000 for married joint filers). The standard deductions for tax year 2023 are $13,850 for individual filers and those married filing separately and $27,700 for married joint filers.

The charitable deduction encourages individuals to give away more money to charity than they otherwise would. Unfortunately, the current deduction is only available to those who itemize, roughly 12 percent of taxpayers. A temporary universal charitable deduction enacted in 2020 expired at the end of 2021, creating uncertainty for Americans and the charities that rely on their donations to serve their communities.

The need for more charitable giving is not going away. From natural disasters to social problems to economic hardship and workforce shortages and the need for more job training services, America is facing unprecedented challenges that nonprofit services can help to address. Congress can help the sector serve communities by restoring and expanding the universal charitable deduction, which encourages all Americans, regardless of income, to give to charity.

Goodwill Industries International is one of 175 members of the Charitable Giving Coalition which supports this legislation. Join us in our efforts and ask your lawmakers to cosponsor The Charitable Act today. Click here to access the GII Legislative Action Center.