Residents of the Sacramento region are less likely to give to charity than their counterparts nationwide – and the average amount given per household lags behind the national average.

These are among the findings of the Greater Sacramento Generosity Project scheduled for release today, and the impetus for a campaign this fall to boost charitable giving.

The project, commissioned by the Sacramento Region Community Foundation and the Nonprofit Resource Center, found that 62 percent of households in the four-county region — El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo – give to charities, compared with 66 percent of households nationwide. The average annual contribution per donor household in the Sacramento region is $1,990, trailing the national average of $2,355.

Representatives of philanthropic organizations say individual giving is essential to filling the gaps left by cuts in government services.

"For a lot of nonprofits, the downturn in the economy has created a greater demand for their services," said Ruth Blank, chief executive officer of the Sacramento Region Community Foundation.

"This is about individual giving," said Ann Lucas, a consultant and former executive director of the Nonprofit Resource Center in Sacramento. "A lot of the time we look to the corporate sector to give."

But nationally, she said, only about 5 percent of charitable giving comes from corporate donors, and an additional 12 percent from foundations. Individual donations account for 83 percent.

Lucas, who spent much of her life in the Midwest, said she has been impressed by the number of people in the Sacramento area who care about their community and volunteer their services. But she believes the culture of financial giving has not been instilled here as it has in other parts of the country.

In the Sacramento region, households with annual incomes of more than $200,000 compared the least favorably with their counterparts nationwide in terms of total giving.

"I have a deep appreciation that for people who are without work or fearful of being laid off, this may not be the right time for them to step up," Lucas said.

But she and others hope to encourage those who can to give, and to increase their giving as the economy improves.

Project sponsors aim to boost the number of households that give by 42,000 and to increase the contribution per household to meet the national average.

The study, prepared by the Center for Strategic Economic Research in Sacramento, used charitable giving data from federal tax records to compare the Sacramento region with national averages as well as four benchmark regions: San Jose, Riverside, Kansas City and Indianapolis.

San Jose is a Northern California region comparable in population, while Riverside is an inland area with growth dynamics similar to Sacramento's, said Ryan Sharp, director of the Center of Strategic Economic Research. Indianapolis, like Sacramento, is a state capital, and all four regions had done similar studies that provided data for comparison.

The Institute for Social Research at California State University, Sacramento, also conducted a survey involving nearly 2,000 computer-assisted telephone interviews with residents of the four counties to obtain a snapshot of giving in 2009.

The data from the project will be used to develop a campaign to increase public awareness of the importance of charitable giving. It also will be made available to nonprofit organizations throughout the region to help them hone their messages and encourage increased giving to local charities.

The research revealed that although 91 percent of households surveyed believe it is important to give locally, only 63 percent of donations were made to local organizations.

"A lot of people in the region are from other areas and might have roots in other areas. There aren't a lot of multigenerational families here," said Scott Hanson, a financial adviser and chairman of the Generosity Project's steering committee. "Giving (locally) is one way to make this community theirs."

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