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A slowdown in charitable giving means that more Endow Iowa tax credits are available than usual at this time of the year.

In 2008, more than half of the $3.1 million in Endow Iowa tax credits were spoken for within the first three months of the year. By comparison, midway through September, more than $1.8 million of this year’s credits remain unclaimed.

“This is an ideal time for philanthropic-minded Iowans to make a charitable gift to their favorite community foundation,” said Stacy Rungaitis, chief operating officer of the Charitable Giving Resource Center, a subsidiary of Syverson Strege & Co. “A lot of times, people just assume those funds are gone, and they are not gone. It’s a great way to help yourself and the community.”

The Legislature established the Endow Iowa program in 2003 to encourage gifts to permanent endowments at qualified community foundations. Since then, more than $50 million in charitable giving has been leveraged by the tax credits. Iowans are limited to no more than $100,000 in tax credits per person, or $200,000 per couple. Qualified Iowa donors can carry their credits ahead four more years if they can’t use them all in the current year.

Nationally, charitable giving was down about 5.7 percent in 2008 compared with 2007, “and that’s really the first time since 1968 that we’ve seen a decrease,” Rungaitis said, citing data from Giving USA. “I think the feeling is that giving is going to be headed in the same direction as it was in 2008.”

Many major philanthropists, those who typically donate $25,000 or more each year, appear to be waiting until later in the year to evaluate what they will give, Rungaitis said. “It’s not that they’re not going to give it, but they’re holding it just a little bit longer,” she said. “They need a little more trust and security in terms of the economic times.”