Promise and Peril: Philanthropy at the Precipice

America's richest people are giving away a lot more than they used to, according to a new white paper from the Brookings Institution.

The paper, titled "Pledge and Peril: Philanthropy at the Precipice," finds that while the wealthiest 1% of Americans are giving away more than they used to, the rest of us are "lying fallow in the treasuries of grantmaking organizations rather than being expended to support good works and alleviate suffering," the Washington Post reports.

" Philanthropy reflects the expansive capacity of our system to reward individual initiative and inspire generosity," the paper states.

"Yet it also demonstrates the perils of the inequality this very system engenders."

The paper calls for reforms to make the tax code fairer, to help philanthropic funds flow more quickly and abundantly, to ensure our values are reflected, and to "broaden the base of public support for charitable causes," the Post reports.

The paper calls for the creation of a new type of charity called a donor-advised fund.

A DAF is a kind of nonprofit checking and savings account created by a donor and used to make donations of funds or nonliquid assets.

The donor relinquishes control over the DAF when it is established and receives a tax deduction at the same time, even though no grants have

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