Public Policy

HARTFORD, CT -- Conventional wisdom is that the total price charged by the state and its local governments in Connecticut is one of the most burdensome in the country. A common measure upon which this conclusion is based is the total amount we residents pay in state and local taxes, relative to our aggregate personal income, i.e., our capacity to pay.  On this basis, the Tax Foundation tells us that Connecticut ranks either first or second highest in the nation, depending on which of two analytic models it uses. However, taxes are not the only price paid to governments. Residents also pay a number of fees and other charges, separate and distinct from taxes. By Bill Cibes

BOSTON, MA -- Research on giving in the United States has now produced definitive empirical evidence to show a decline in the participation and amounts donated by “small” and “medium” (actually, median) donors and an increasing reliance on “large” donors. That lead sentence should make every reader stop and envision the future of philanthropy in our democracy. Nonprfit Quarterly's Patrick Rooney writes in support of a universal charitable deduction.