Abstract:
In this paper, we examine specifically how the presence of corporate firms is associated with nonprofit, charitable activity in US metropolitan areas. We find evidence of a positive association consistent with Card, Hallock, and Moretti (2010) and, due to a longer time horizon with additional information on nonprofit activity, are able to provide additional investigation into how firm location affects size of the nonprofit sector and other nonprofit activities such as fundraising. Our estimates suggest a lower bound on the spillovers such that the presence of an additional firm headquarters within a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) leads to a $8.2 million increase in total charitable contributions within the same MSA. Moreover, a $1 billion rise in the aggregate market value of firms within an MSA corresponds to a $0.8 million increase in local charitable donations.
