SOI Tax Stats - Domestic Private Foundation and Charitable Trust Statistics
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Snapshot of Private Foundation Statistics
Private foundations organized for charitable purposes are exempt from income taxes. They are differentiated from tax-exempt public charities by their narrow bases of control and financial support. Statistics on private foundations are compiled from Form 990-PF, an annual information return that includes data on excise tax liability, charitable distributions, administrative expenditures, as well as income statement and balance sheet information. Data are available for the following types of organizations:
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Operating Foundations—Generally conduct their own charitable activities, e.g., museums
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Nonoperating Foundations—Generally provide charitable support through grants and other financial means to charitable organizations; the majority of foundations are nonoperating
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Section 4947(a)(1) Nonexempt Charitable Trusts—Charitable trusts treated as private foundations for tax purposes; may be operating or nonoperating
For information about selected terms and concepts, a description of the data sources and limitations, and links to recent revisions of Form 990-PF, please visit the Private Foundations Study Metadata page.
Statistical Tables
The following tables are available as Microsoft Excel® files. A free Excel viewer is available for download, if needed.
NOTE: Statistics for the years denoted by an asterisk (*) include information reported by both domestic and foreign foundations and charitable trusts.
Domestic Private Foundations: | |
Number and Selected Financial Data | |
Classified by: | Type of Foundation and Size of End-of-Year Fair Market Value of Total Assets |
Tax Years: | 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 1990 1989 1988 1987 1986 1985 |
Income Statements and Balance Sheets | |
Classified by: | Size of End-of-Year Fair Market Value of Total Assets |
Tax Years: | 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1996* 1995* 1994* 1993* 1992* 1991* |
Selected Data Items in Current Dollars | |
Classified by: | Asset Size |
Tax Years: | 1993–2002 |
Domestic Nonoperating Private Foundations: | |
Disbursements for Charitable Purposes—in Constant Dollars | |
Tax Years: | 1985–2009 |
Disbursements for Charitable Purposes—in Current Dollars | |
Tax Years: | 1985–2009 |
Noncharitable-Use Assets and Qualifying Distributions | |
Tax Years: | 1985–2009 |
Largest 100 Nonoperating Private Foundations—Selected Financial Data | |
Tax Years: | Panel Study, 1985–1997 |
Selected Data Items by Asset Size—in Current Dollars | |
Tax Years: | 1993–2002 |
Domestic IRC Section 4947(a)(1) Charitable Trusts Treated as Foundations: | |
Number and Selected Financial Data | |
Classified by: | Type of Charitable Trust and Size of End-of-Year Fair Market Value of Assets |
Tax Years: | 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1996* 1995* 1994* 1993* 1992* 1991* |
Income Statements and Balance Sheets | |
Classified by: | Size of End-of-Year Fair Market Value of Assets |
Tax Years: | 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1996* 1995* 1994* 1993* 1992* 1991* |
Excise Taxes Reported by Charities, Private Foundations, and Split-Interest Trusts on Form 4720 | |
Classified by: | Type of Excise Tax |
Calendar Years: | 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 |
To make customized tables using this data, please visit the Statistics of Income Tax Stats Table Wizard.
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Historical Table: | |
Table 16—Nonprofit Charitable Organization and Domestic Private Foundation Information Returns, and Tax-Exempt Organization Business Income Tax Returns: Selected Financial Data, Expanded | |
Published as: Tax Years: |
SOI Bulletin Historical Table 16 1985–2008 |
Projections | |
For selected tax returns, including the Form 990-PF, IRS's Office of Research produces annual forecasts of the number of returns that will be filed in future years. | |
Projections of Returns to be Filed in Future Calendar Years |
Publications and Papers
The following are available as PDF files. A free Adobe® reader is available for download, if needed.
- Domestic Private Foundations and Charitable Trusts
2008 2007 2005–2006 2004 2003 2001 2000 1999 1998 1996–1997 1996* 1995* 1994* 1993* 1991–1992* 1992* 1991* 1990* 1989* 1988* 1986–1987* 1985* 1983* 1982* 1979*
- A History of the Tax-Exempt Sector: An IRS Perspective
- Current Research in the Nonprofit Sector
- Domestic Private Foundations, Tax Years 1993–2002
- Large Nonoperating Private Foundations Panel Study, 1985–1997
- Data Interpretation across Sources: A Study of Form 990-PF Information Collected from Multiple Databases
- Taxing Charity: Linking Income Tax Returns to Samples of Nonexempt Charitable and Charitable Remainder Trust Returns
- A 20-Year Review of the Nonprofit Sector, 1975–1995
- Compendium of Studies of Tax-Exempt Organizations
(Publication 1416)
Other SOI Data on Trusts
Form 5227 is an information return filed by split-interest trusts, those who make distributions to both charitable and noncharitable beneficiaries, while providing tax benefits to their donor. Form 1041 is the income tax return filed by fiduciaries to report income, distributions, and tax liability of estates and trusts.
Microdata Files
This section contains microdata files for all Forms 990-PF sampled for the annual SOI studies of tax-exempt organizations.
The data are contained in ASCII flat files, Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and Adobe Acrobat PDF. Documentation to assist with the files is included. (Free Adobe Acrobat reader, WinZip utility, and Microsoft Excel viewer software is available for download, if needed.)
The sample include returns filed by private foundations, exempt under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3), and section 4947(a)(1) nonexempt charitable trusts. The stratified random samples are based on asset size and represent approximately 10 percent of Forms 990-PF filed; sampling rates of 100 percent are applied to large-asset classes. Microdata records contain most financial information from Forms 990-PF, as well as weights (to estimate the population), for each organization.
To access compressed data, click on one of the following links to download a compressed (Zip) file. These files will uncompress the microdata and documentation files simultaneously.
2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 1990
To access uncompressed data, click on one of the following links to access a page with links to both data and documentation files.
2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999
To make customized tables using this data, please visit the Statistics of Income Tax Stats Table Wizard.
Other IRS Data and Related Links
For tax administration data on this topic, as well as other types of taxes, choose from the links below.
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