Is anyone surprised that when the times get tough the well-off stop contributing as much to charity, but the middle and lower classes increase their giving? I guess compassion for the less fortunate only stretches so far when your bonus is a few thousand bucks less than the previous year.
(Reuters) – Wealthy Americans contributed less of their incomes to charity while low and middle-income residents gave more in the years surrounding the Great Recession, according to a newly released report by The Chronicle of Philanthropy.
U.S. residents earning an annual $200,000 or more reduced the amount of income they gave to charity by 4.6 percent between 2006 and 2012, while those who earned less than $100,000 a year increased charitable spending by 4.5 percent of their pay over the same time period, said the report, issued on Sunday.
