Incentivando la participación del sector privado en el financiamiento de las artes y la cultura

Abstract

Cultural activities require funding. Financing might be provided by contributions from both public and private sectors. Pending on the level of State intervention, different kinds of art support models emerges. Chile has adopted a model that combines both public and private sources, were the State contribute funds while simultaneously encourages the private sector to donate trough tax incentives via the Cultural Donations Law. This law has generated an increase in charitable donations, but only half of the cultural projects that look after private financing manage to obtain it. This fact suggests that the private sector might need more motivations to foster donations. Therefore, seems necessary enact mechanisms to promote its participation to a larger extent than currently is engaged. In United States of America, about 90% of funds for cultural activities come from the private sector. This large support is based on legislation that incentivizes charity gifts. Within this framework, I analyze which features of the American regulation could be incorporated to the Chilean law in order to increase private contributions. In this regard: a) I perform a comparative analysis of the American and Chilean tax incentives for cultural donations, b) I empirically study willingness to donate among individual and corporations entitled to donate under current Chilean law if attributes of the American regulation were incorporated and, c) I empirically assess willingness to donate of Chilean citizens who currently are not eligible as donors if Chilean law were modified to include them. Based in the comparative analysis, I advance five characteristics that could modify the behavior of the potential donors: a) increase the maximum limits of donations, b) allow the deduction of donations surplus up to five years the donation was made, c) allow to donate directly to qualified organizations instead of individual projects on a case by case basis, d) allow to obtain benefits in exchange of the charity contributions and, e) incorporate as donors those citizens who currently are not eligible given their accounting system is not complete. Later, I empirically analyze willingness to donate if these changes were introduced in the Chilean regulation. Through a questionnaire applied to companies and individuals that can donate under current legislation, at least 56% of respondents claimed they will increase their donations in case modifications were made to a) the amount to deduct, b) the surplus and, c) the possibility to donate to organizations rather than projects were incorporated into the Chilean law. To receive a benefit for their donation was not a factor, as donors and donors-to-be argued that supporting cultural activity is their real motivation. Finally, to investigate if enlarging the universe of donors with the inclusion of those people who currently cannot benefit by the law, donations would increase, I analyze their willingness to donate. An 87% of the interviewed people would donate if they were benefited by tax-deduction. Therefore, if these modifications were implemented into current legislation, financial resources for cultural activities could increase significantly. This is positive in financial terms, and it is also a step to achieve a strengthening of citizen participation, were everyone takes responsibility of being an active part of its culture.