Like thousands of other nonprofits in the arts, education, and human services, approximately 2,200 American orchestras are classified as 501(c )(3) tax-exempt organizations. This exemption and the incentive to give private donations are essential for orchestras and other charitable organizations to serve community needs.  

Congress used the budget reconciliation process to extend many tax provisions from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) that were set to expire at the end of 2025, bundling tax policies with budget priorities to pass one mammoth bill in the coming months. The final package included several changes impacting charitable giving, including a permanent charitable deduction for non-itemizers, up to $1,000 for individuals and $2,000 for joint filers.

Orchestras are calling on Congress to: 

Support expanded incentives for charitable giving: The number of taxpayers eligible to itemize returns fell dramatically with the near-doubling of the standard deduction in 2017. A temporary charitable deduction for non-itemizers included in federal COVID-19 relief spurred increased giving by a broad base of taxpayers. The Charitable Act has broad bipartisan support and would provide a larger deduction of up to roughly $5,000 for individuals and $10,000 for joint filers that do not itemize their tax returns. See Talking Points from our partners in the Charitable Giving Coalition.

Talking Points 

• Orchestras and other nonprofit arts organizations are part of the broader community of approximately 1.4 million nonprofit 501(c )(3) organizations, working alongside hospitals, educational institutions, food assistance programs, and the full array of charitable organizations.
• Support from donors across the economic spectrum is essential to making this work possible, as orchestras respond to the needs of communities and form partnerships through education, artistic, economic development, and social service programs.
• When examining giving to orchestras by individual donors who are not trustees, there is evidence of a broad base of community support for the orchestras' work; 72% of the charitable gifts to orchestras from the general public were under $250, demonstrating that community members with a wide range of economic means find value in their local orchestras and invest in their sustainability.
• Polling data released by Independent Sector show 88% of voters support permanently restoring the universal charitable deduction for all taxpayers.
• Ticket sales and admission fees alone do not come close to subsidizing the artistic presentations, educational offerings, and community-based programming of orchestras. On average, more than 40% of financial support for orchestras is derived from private contributions. Without this support, public access to high-quality arts programming would be greatly diminished.
• While the initial impulse to give comes from the heart, studies have repeatedly shown that charitable giving incentives have a significant impact on how much and when donors contribute. When charitable giving incentives are scaled back, donations and critical services available to the public diminish.