Tzedakah, Inc.
Supporting More Effective Jewish Giving
Web address:www.just-tzedakah.org

MEMO:

FROM:    Ira Kaminow , President
TO:          Friends of Tzedakah, Inc.
DATE:     June 1, 2006 (Erev Shanuot 5766);
RE:          What's new in the world of nonprofits

   Best wishes for a chag Shavuot sameach.

   I'd appreciate any feedback you might have. Just let me know by email whether you think the information is interesting and useful, and how I might improve the content or layout. Of course if you want to get off our list, let me know that as well. You can send me an email by clicking on my name above.

   "Open your hand wide for your impoverished brother" When the last day of a holiday falls on Shabbat, as Shavuot does this year, the Torah reading speaks of generosity to the poor. The sage known as the Kli Yakar learns from the text that charity involves both money and compassion. This idea is based on the Torah's use of double word forms for emphasis. "You shall surely tithe" becomes aser t'aser. The Kli Yakar says one word of the pair is for money given with the hand and one for compassion given with the heart and mouth. Because we have found that in the discussion of tzedakah, words are repeated, (Deuteronomy 14:22) "you shall surely tithe," (15:10) "you shall surely give," (15:8 an 11) "you shall surely open your hand," (15:8) "you shall surely lend," the reward is correspondingly doubled "I will surely bless you." Accordingly, we see that tzedakah has two aspects: giving with the hand and consolation with the mouth so that his heart not be embittered. The donor should give with a pleasant expression and with a full heart and the supplicant should not hear rebuke.

   Please remember to give tzedakah in memory of your departed loved ones. We will be reciting Yizkor this coming Shabbat, the second dy of Shavuot. Please remember that the Yizkor prayer includes a pledge to give tzedakah in memory of our departed loved ones. You are encouraged to give to your favorite tzedakah, or can find one on our site at: http://just-tzedakah.org/shopdisplaycategories.asp

   Do matching contributions increase charitable donations? A recent research paper by scholars from Yale University and the University of Chicago concludes that a promised one-for-one match increases revenue per solicitation by 19% and increases the probabilty that a solicited individual will donate by 22%. However, matches larger than dollar-for-dollar don't seem increase contributions beyond one-for-one matches. Click here to see the paper: http://aida.econ.yale.edu/karlan/papers/MatchingGrant.pdf

   Do charities get more from the charitable tax deduction than IRS loses? Not always says a recently published study by economists at the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Fannie Mae. The research looked at contributions to religious, educational, and social welfare charities. It concludes that contributions to social welfare charities are modestly higher than tax revenues foregone by the IRS. Taking all three classes of charities together, the IRS loses more than charities gain. Click here to purchase a copy of this paper: http://cep.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/23/4/545

   Supreme Court refuses to hear case that would remove restrictions from charity telemarketers. The Federal Trade Commission issued regulations that limit commercial telemarketers from calling before 8:00am and after 9:00pm and from using recorded messages. Two Maryland charities held that such restrictions violated their free speech. The Supreme Court let stand lower court rulings that supported the FTC.

   Current status of change in tax-deductibility of charitable contributions. Current betting is that none of the charity-related tax proposals will pass this year. One of those proposed provisions would have allowed non-itemizers to deduct some charitable contributions and would have reduced the charitable deduction for itemizers.

   Giving Registry^TM on our just-tzedakah website The current issue of the Chronicle of Philanthropy features an article on charitable wedding registries. These registries allow invited guests to make charitable contributions in honor of celebrants. Did you know that such a service is avialable through our just-tzedakah website? It's great for any simcha including weddings, bar and bat mitzvah celebrations, brises, etc. etc. etc.Click her for more information on our Giving Registry^TM

   Tzedakah, Inc. Tzedakah, Inc. is a nonprofit organization supporting effective Jewish giving through more informed donors and more accountable non-profits. To find out more about our activities and services, visit us on the web at www.just-tzedakah.org

Tizku L'mitzvos