Federal Tax Cut, State Budget Problems Have Hurt Connecticut Nonprofits

HARTFORD, CT --A federal tax law reducing the incentive for charitable giving and Connecticut’s continual budget woes are putting a squeeze on the state’s nonprofits, according to experts in the field. The Connecticut Council for Philanthropy and the Connecticut Community Nonprofit Alliance surveyed the state’s nonprofits earlier this year and found 43 percent received or expected to receive fewer donations in 2019 as a result of federal tax law changes, according to data published in May. Individual charitable giving nationwide increased 6 percent from 2015 to 2016, but it decreased 4.5 percent in Connecticut, from $3.81 billion to $3.32 billion, according to CCP’s Connecticut Giving Reports from 2018 and 2019.