Lankford Announces Overwhelming Support from Nonprofits on Amendment to Increase Charitable Giving Deduction

WASHINGTON, DC – Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today offered an amendment to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which would increase the bill’s $300 limit on the charitable giving deduction to one-third of the standard deduction ($4,000 for an individual filer and $8,000 for married joint filers) for the 2020 tax year. Lankford’s amendment is similar to the language of his Universal Charitable Giving Act, which Lankford first offered as a stand-alone bill in 2017.

Over 1,000 non-profits have announced their support for the amendment this afternoon, including the following groups: Bethany Christian Services, Faith & Giving Coalition, Kentucky Nonprofit Network, National Association of Evangelicals, Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, Institutional Religious Freedom Alliance, World Vision, Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits, Red Cross, Association of Christian Schools International, Family Research Council, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, American Association of Christian Schools, Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, United Way, The Jewish Federation of North America, Agudath Israel of America, Alzheimer’s Association, Americans for the Arts, Association of Art Museum Directors, Blinded Veterans Association (BVA), Center for Public Justice, Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA), Goodwill Industries International, Inc. Jumpstart, National Council of Nonprofits, VisionServe Alliance, and YWCA USA. 

Lankford released the following statement upon introducing the amendment, “Now is the time to encourage more charitable giving, and my amendment offers Americans an incentive to do that. There is a role for government in a crisis, and there is an even stronger role for our non-profits, churches, and community organizations who are the boots on the ground helping our friends and neighbors in Oklahoma. I encourage my colleagues to support this amendment to encourage Americans to give more to non-profits in our communities as they continue to support our nation’s vulnerable individuals and families in need.”

The amendment was cosponsored by Senators Chris Coons (D-DE), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Mike Lee (R-UT), Tim Scott (R-SC), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH).

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