[1][2][3] Headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, as of January 2011 it was reported to have approximately four billion dollars in assets,[4] and to have donated more than $580 million to local charities and government projects.

[5] Tulsa Community Foundation is a tax-exempt, public charity organized in 1998.

It was founded by Tulsa oilman, banker, and philanthropist George Kaiser, who felt that Tulsa's historical dependence on unorganized private giving from its wealthy families was no longer effective.

[5] In 2005, members of the United States Senate Committee on Finance, and others, criticized the foundation structure of TCF, and other charities, for arguably permitting givers to take tax deductions out of proportion to the actual amounts given for public charity, and for potentially allowing the donors to have effective control of the community foundation.

[9] Because the Tulsa Community Foundation (unlike some private foundations) is not restricted from making gifts to government agencies, it has also drawn occasional comment and criticism for its potential influence on local government.