Table 1 lists the distribution of the various types of public charities by state in 1992. Education accounted for 17 percent of all expenditures, and human services organizations for 11 percent. All other types of nonprofits, combined, reported less than 10 percent of all expenditures in the sector. Assets are concentrated in health and education nonprofits, but public support dollars are spread somewhat more widely. Other types of nonprofits claim much smaller shares of public support.
State patterns vary, however.
In Rhode Island, Delaware, West Virginia, and Nevada, over half of all public support money for nonprofits is claimed by human services organizations. Finances are concentrated geographically. Together, New York and California held between 20 and 25 percent of the finances of public charities, but accounted for 20 percent of these organizations nationwide and 19 percent of the U.S. population. The early 1990s saw an increase in public charities. Between 1989 and 1994, the number of public charities reporting to the IRS grew by 6.3 percent annually, compared with national population growth of 1.1 percent.