S.W. Washington nonprofits review revenue

Giving Ratio (donations as a percentage of adjusted gross income) in Washington’s 39 counties places Clark at 22nd, Cowlitz at 23rd and Skamania as 39th.

Top in-kind income Southwest Washington nonprofits

1. Clark County Food Bank: $7,982,082
2. Community Foundation of Southwest Washington: $2,192,911
3. F.I.S.H. of Orchards: $2,110,137

Top government grant recipients

1. Educational Opportunities for Children & Families $10,043,530
2. Columbia Land Trust $9,775,222
3. Columbia River Mental Health $9,623,799

Top event fundraising

1. Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Washington $750,372
2. YWCA Clark County $552,262
3. Naydenov Gymnastics Booster Club: $362,849

Top revenue earners

1. PeaceHealth $1,898,510,877
2. PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center $573,754,160
3. Legacy Salmon Creek Hospital $252,470,757

Clark County by the numbers

1,000 nonprofits.

22nd most giving among Washington’s 39 counties.

2.97 average percent of adjusted income resident gave to nonprofits.

$3,014 median contribution.

Source: Nonprofit Network of Southwest Washington

For more information visit

• www.philanthropy.com/interactives/how-america-gives

• www.givingusa.org/

• www.nccs.urban.org/

When Carol Van Natta moved back to Clark County in 2013 after nearly 40 years away, people told her, ” ‘Oh, you’ll love being back. Clark County is such a generous community.’ ” Van Natta, executive director of the PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center Foundation, heard this again and again. Was there hard evidence to back up this characterization, or was it merely anecdotal?

That question was part of what led to the Nonprofit Revenue Review, a study of nonprofits in Southwest Washington’s Clark, Cowlitz and Skamania counties completed by the Nonprofit Network of Southwest Washington. Thursday’s presentation at the headquarters for PeaceHealth, which sponsored the report, focused on revenues among 119 Clark County organizations earning $250,000 or more. Certified public accountants combed 990 tax forms filed between 2012 and 2014 to get a better idea of who’s earning what.

The largest annual revenue earners are mostly medical. The PeaceHealth organization in its entirety was No. 1, earning nearly $1.9 billion annually, with PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center and Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center rounding out the top three. They earn the most program revenue, as in the health care they provide, said James Phelps, who presented the findings.

When the focus shifts to in-kind income, there’s a different ranking. The Clark County Food Bank comes out at No. 1 with almost $8 million in annual donations, followed by the Community Foundation of Southwest Washington and F.I.S.H of Orchards.

Where does most of the money come from, though?

If health care organizations are taken out of the picture, it turns out that most revenue comes in the form of government grants.

Even more surprising, Phelps said, is that the Naydenov Gymnastics Booster Club — a much smaller organization in comparison to the health care giants — raised $362,849 through fundraising events. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Southwest Washington raised $750,372. Some organizations that are more actively fundraising are more visible and well-known in the community, but they don’t necessarily have the largest revenues.

The revenue review only looks at organizations that filed taxes locally. So Washington State University Vancouver, for instance, wasn’t considered in the report because tax returns are filed in Pullman, where the main university campus is anchored.

Faith-based organizations and private foundations weren’t included in the study.

Givers of modest means

Clark County’s lowest earners give the biggest percentage of their income to charity. Those earning up to $25,000 on average give 8.14 percent of their adjusted gross income, otherwise known as their “giving ratio,” according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Those in this income bracket gave an average of $1,839 and contributed about $7.3 million total to charities — the lowest total amount of any income level. Higher earners on average give a larger amount, but it’s a smaller part of their adjusted gross income. Those earning $200,000 annually give about 2.92 percent, the Chronicle of Philanthropy said. They account for more than $113 million in donations.

“To those of us who are in development, this is not a surprise,” said Phelps, who specializes in fundraising.

People who give small amounts over a long period of time are often the ones who leave estate gifts because they’re invested in the organization, Phelps said. Even though the tendency is to rely on the wealthy, there’s plenty of opportunity among smaller, loyal donors. Nationally, about 72 percent of donations come from individuals, according to data from Giving USA. Foundations give 15 percent, and 8 percent comes from bequests. The smallest amount, 5 percent, is given by corporations, the data says.

Overall, Clark County’s giving ratio of 2.97 percent is just below the state average of 3.08 percent. The state ranks 22nd in the nation, somewhere between Utah’s 6.5 percent and New Hampshire’s 2 percent. While the local giving ratio suggests Clark County isn’t as generous as locals claim it is, the ratio doesn’t include donated time, Phelps said.

There are an estimated 31,654 volunteers in Southwest Washington, the Nonprofit Revenue Review said. Washington ranks ninth in the nation for volunteerism.

“It appears that people give a lot of their time, not as much of their money,” Phelps said.

Clark County’s volunteers have the potential to become future donors, he said. The area did not recover as quickly from the economic downturn, so that may also account for the comparatively low giving ratio, Phelps said.

Giving doesn’t necessarily stay local, either. People give to state, national and international organizations or perhaps their alma mater or a cause in a former hometown.

“We are a much more global world than we used to be,” Phelps said.

When Clark County experienced historic population gains, a lot of newcomers wanted to get involved in the community and it was around this time that foundations started making million-dollar donations, said Jeanne Kojis, the executive director of the Nonprofit Network of Southwest Washington. It made Clark County realize, and feel enthusiastic, about the possibility for local nonprofits to secure large gifts.

“That’s all in the last 25 years or so,” Kojis said. “It’s not an illusion that we are a generous community, but in order to remain generous and live up to that … we need to be intentional about it.”