Adina Genn / Long Island Business News
New charitable giving rules for 2026 may present challenges for non-profits, including those serving vulnerable populations.
The Retreat, an East Hampton-based 24/7 domestic violence service provider, said it is facing a dual challenge. In addition to seeing unprecedented demand for its services, The Retreat is also coping with tax changes it claims could reduce charitable deductions beginning in January.
The tax changes could impact contributions from major donors, experts say.
“This year has been unlike any in The Retreat’s history,” Elise Trucks, director of development at The Retreat, said in a news release.
“Calls for help are rising sharply at the same moment that survivor services across Long Island are shrinking,” she said. “Federal tax changes add another pressure point for nonprofits that rely on year-end giving to stay open.”
The challenges come in a year that The Safe Center LI – a nonprofit that had served Nassau County’s survivors of domestic violence – closed its doors. And other centers, according to The Retreat, have reduced services because of funding cuts. All of this has triggered a “significant surge in crisis referrals,” especially for shelter and legal advocacy, according to The Retreat.
The East End organization says it now serves more than 9,000 survivors a year.
In 2024, Suffolk County Police said that there were more than 27,000 domestic violence incidents reported, and more than 280,000 total incidents reported in the last decade, Suffolk County said in a news release in October.
To help meet demand for survivor services, The Retreat is urging year-end giving as the organization aims to continue serving the community. The organization provides emergency shelter for families; counseling, legal advocacy and trauma-informed support; school-based and community-based prevention programming; and a 24/7 hotline.
Beginning in 2026 charitable gifts from donors who itemize donations will need to exceed one-half of one percent of their adjusted gross income before receiving any tax benefit, and the tax benefit will be capped at 35 percent of their adjusted gross income – changes that could reduce tax benefits for higher-income donors, experts say. But supporters who itemize donations may gain greater tax advantages by giving before Dec. 31. Donors should consult their tax advisors to determine how the new regulations may affect them.
Nonprofits may want to consider whether they should make their plea now to donors at a time when federal cuts are high and so many organizations are trying to raise funds before year-end.
“If you’re going to sharpen your unique value proposition, you better do it now,” Marlissa Hudson, CEO of English Hudson, told The Chronicle of Philanthropy. “Because the noise level around nonprofits right now is at a fever pitch. To even be able to get through to donors, you have to be very clear about who you are and what you can accomplish.”
For those helping domestic survivors, that timing is seemingly urgent.
“With peer services disappearing and demand rising, The Retreat has become the safety net for much of Eastern Long Island,” Cate Carbonaro, executive director of The Retreat, said in the news release.
Donating before the end-of-the-year, Carbonaro said, would help ensure “that every survivor has someone to turn to. If there is capacity, the time to give is now.”
