What are the incentives for giving to private foundations and public charities?
Federal law creates different incentives for tax-exempt giving to public and private charities. Generally, gifts to public charities receive more favorable tax treatment than those to private foundations. For example, federal law limits charitable contributions of cash to public charities to 50 percent of the taxpayer’s adjusted gross income, but gifts of cash to private foundations are limited to 30 percent of AGI. Similar, but lower, limits apply to gifts of stock and other kinds of property.
