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Nonprofits wary ahead of annual GivingTuesday

Since it started as a hashtag in 2012, Giving­Tuesday, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, has become one of the biggest fundraising days of the year for nonprofits in the U.S. This year, nonprofits face uncertainty about how donors may respond to a range of changing factors.

High prices may affect how much small dollar donors give this year or how many charities they will support. But President Donald Trump’s tax and spending legislation, which passed in July, also included a new charitable deduction of up to $1,000 for individuals and $2,000 for married couples for the majority of tax filers. That could incentivize more households to give.

For larger donors, a strong stock market usually indicates they will give generously. These major donors also make up an increasingly important share of overall charitable donations and are more likely to give than less economically well off households, according to a study from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy in partnership with Bank of America.

Nonprofits are also letting potential supporters know about a range of new challenges this year, with many human service organizations seeing higher demand while facing cuts to government grants, especially cuts to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits. And many charities are highlighting programs that will match or multiply donations — even up to a factor of five at some nonprofits — to showcase increased impact.

Altogether, that sets up GivingTuesday, which falls on Dec. 2 to be a high stakes fundraising day for U.S. nonprofits.

There is essentially no wrong way to choose what nonprofit or cause to give to, volunteer with or champion.

Asha Curran, CEO of the nonprofit GivingTuesday, suggests looking at what your friends, relatives or connections have supported and consider matching their gift. That means giving the same amount to the same nonprofit.

“It’s like a double act of generosity,” Curran said. “You’re giving to the cause and you’re also saying, ‘I really care about what you care about.'”

You could consider giving to organizations based in your community, whose impact will be felt locally. You could also choose to support a nonprofit that works on a cause you have a personal connection to. There are also many organizations that rate nonprofits or offer analysis about which organizations are most effective, though you will see a range of opinions on what it means to be effective.

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