Corporate Giving is Up

In 1999 actor/salad dressing entrepreneur Paul Newman started up something called the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, a non-profit 501(c)(3) group. The committee says it is comprised of some 165 CEOs of companies that generate 40% of reported corporate philanthropy in the U.S. It has released its 2006 report on corporate giving by the Fortune 100, America’s largest companies.

Median dollar value giving was up 4.8% per company to $32.6 million, while giving as a percentage of revenue remained stable.The area of K-12 education increased its recipient market share of corporate giving by 3% from 10% to 13% of all giving. Health and social services received the highest percentage of contributions—31%–while environment received the least—3%.Corporations gave 7% of their contributions to public affairs and civic groups.

Not surprisingly, corporations give heavily to industry-related causes.High-tech companies are the largest givers to education, mostly because they fund math and science programs which produce the engineers they need as future workers.Health care companies, including pharmaceuticals, mainly fund health and social services projects.

Among the report’s many findings: US corporations have been increasing their giving to international and disaster reliefcauses.And among the cited motives for corporate philanthropic giving, strategic concerns (49%) outweighed charitable concerns (42%).