Wunderlich: The giving economy under review

The holiday season incites reflection and appreciation of blessings and good fortune. The Christmas season centers around giving, and that is reflected in the economy. While Americans tend to be among the most generous in the world, Nevadans rank among the lowest states in the nation.

From a global perspective, Americans are extremely generous. According to the 2013 study by the Hudson Institute, Americans give $39 billion in private donation for overseas aid annually. In comparison, the next on the list was Japan giving $5.5 billion followed by the U.K. giving $4.2 billion. What is probably more surprising is private donations outpaced government spending in the sector by $8.1 billion.

Although the United States is the largest charitable giver, it is not the most generous per capita. According to the World Giving Index, the highest percentage of givers within a country is Myanmar at 92 percent. Thailand is a close second at 87 percent. The United States is down the list ranking 12th at 63 percent.

Time is a measure of value in the giving economy to be acknowledged. Again, Myanmar ranks first with 50 percent of their citizens volunteering time. Sri Lanka ranks second at 48 percent and the United States ranks sixth at 44 percent of its population volunteering time. In totals, India ranks first with 157 million people volunteering time. The United States ranks second at 115 million.

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According to the World Giving Index, some of the world’s most deprived countries are the most generous; men are now more likely to give than women for the first time since 2008 and people from war-torn Iraq are most likely to help a stranger.

The United States is proud of its support globally but remains domestically inconsistent. States vary widely when it comes to giving. Similar to global patterns, some of the poorest states are among the most generous. Religious dominance also plays a significant role in domestic charitable giving. Eight of the top 10 most generous states were also among Gallup’s top 10 most religious. Seven of the 10 least generous states were among the 10 least religious.

In a study by the Chronicle of Philanthropy, Utah was ranked the most generous state in the country by a long shot with charitable household contributions at 10.6 percent of income. Utah also ranked first in volunteering with 45 percent of its residents volunteering in 2008. The second most generous state, Alabama, also happens to be the state with the lowest per-capita income. In contrast, Massachusetts, which as the second highest per-capita income, ranks 47th in charitable giving.

Nevada ranks at 41st in giving. On average, Nevadans contribute 3.9 percent of discretionary income to charity, and at five points below the national average, 21 percent of the state’s population volunteers. As population grows and jobs come to the state, it will be increasingly important to maintain services for lower earners and those struggling to make ends meet this holiday season.

Dusty Wunderlich is an economist and entrepreneur.