CONCORD, N.H. (AP) – New Hampshire is holding tightly to its distinction as the stingiest state, according to an annual index of charitable giving.

In a ranking of giving compared to income, New Hampshire has been at the bottom of the rankings for three of the last five years, giving up the title to Rhode Island the other two years, according to The Catalogue for Philanthropy.

The index is based on the average adjusted income of residents and the value of itemized charitable donations reported on 2001 federal tax returns, the latest available. New Hampshire residents donated $462 million, an average of about $2,400 per tax payer.

The national average was $3,500. The average looks especially miserly considering the state’s relative wealth: New Hampshire’s average income of $51,000 is eighth highest in the country, while its average giving ranks 48th.

By comparison, Mississippi, the most generous state, had an average income of $34,000 – the lowest in the country – but residents still gave enough to match the national average.

The Catalogue for Philanthropy is a Needham, Mass.-based nonprofit that publishes a directory of nonprofit organizations. The organization created the Generosity Index seven years ago.

New Hampshire’s New England neighbors, Rhode Island, Vermont, Connecticut and Maine are all among the 20 least generous states.

This year’s rankings reveal how Americans responded to the economic turndown, said a spokesman, Marty Cohn.

Overall, the country’s average adjusted gross income fell 3 percent from 2000 to 2001, and itemized charitable donations fell more quickly, by 4 percent. Some states responded with increased charitable giving; others reduced it.

Hawaiians, for example, saw their income decline 1.1 percent, but increased giving by 4.7 percent. In Nebraska, income fell 2.8 percent and giving fell 17.4 percent, the sharpest decline.

In New Hampshire, income fell 6.5 percent and giving declined 12.3 percent.

New Hampshire’s New England neighbors, Rhode Island, Vermont, Connecticut and Maine are all among the 20 least generous states.

By comparison, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Tennessee, Louisiana and South Carolina are all among the top 10.

The regional difference has been attributed to the Southern Christian practice of tithing – giving a tenth of your income to the church.

But there is no simple explanation for New Hampshire’s apparent stinginess, said Deborah Schachert, the director of Giving New Hampshire. The program was founded in 2000 to promote and increase philanthropy in the state.

“It’s a mistake to say that we aren’t giving. New Hampshire gave $461 million in 2001. That’s a lot of giving,” Schachert said. “But we know that if New Hampshire had given the national average, there would have been an additional $219 million given in one year. Think of what could have been done with that,” Schachert said.

Schachert’s program is trying to discover the root of New Hampshire’s relative stinginess, conducting surveys and studies, teaching non-profits how to become better fund raisers, helping financial advisers to suggest charitable donations through wills and trusts, and producing public radio stories about giving.

“There are no simple answers. We’re talking about a profound change over time in the culture of giving across the whole state,” she said.

“New Hampshire is a wealthy state, New Hampshire is a state with strong volunteerism,” she said. “We’re a state with strong civic engagement, which means people trust their neighbors and are involved locally in the affairs of their community … the vast majority of us are engaged. It’s a question of the depth of our generosity, relative to our capacity.”

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On the Net:

The Catalogue for Philanthropy: www.catalogueforphilanthropy.org

Giving New Hampshire: www.givingnh.org

AP-ES-11-04-03 1620EST