Fiscal Cliff Deal Could Hurt Charitable Giving

Legislation the Congress passed Tuesday to avoid the fiscal cliff limits how much wealthy people can claim in deductions for charitable contributions and other spending when they itemize their tax returns. The legislation raises the top tax rate to 39.6 percent on household incomes above $450,000 but maintains current rates for everyone else, or about 98 percent of all Americans. It also delays for two months the $110 billion in federal spending cuts scheduled for 2013.