12 hours ago
6
Donald Trump said again on Friday that he would be “taking away” Harvard’s tax-exempt status as a non-profit in a legally questionable move that escalates his ongoing feud with the elite university.
“We are going to be taking away Harvard’s Tax Exempt Status. It’s what they deserve!” Trump wrote on Truth Social in a more direct message than a post in April when he said “perhaps” the college should lose its tax-exempt status.
Federal law prohibits the president from directing or influencing the Internal Revenue Service to investigate or audit an organization. The White House previously said that the IRS would “independently” decide whether to investigate or act on the university’s status.
In a statement, Harvard noted that the tax-exempt status given to universities makes it so more money can go toward scholarships, research and technological advancements.
“There is no legal basis to rescind Harvard’s tax-exempt status,” a university spokesperson said. “Such an unprecedented action would endanger our ability to carry out our educational mission. It would result in diminished financial aid for students, abandonment of critical medical research programs, and lost opportunities for innovation. The unlawful use of this instrument more broadly would have grave consequences for the future of higher education in America.”
The Trump administration has gone after universities under the guise of antisemitism after pro-Palestine protests swept college campuses since the Israel-Gaza war began. Some universities, most notably Columbia, have capitulated to the administration’s demands in hopes of avoiding funding losses and a showdown. University faculty at some colleges have sought to form alliances with other colleges to defend themselves against Trump’s attacks.
His taskforce on the topic sent a letter of demands to Harvard, saying the college had “failed to live up to both the intellectual and civil rights conditions that justify federal investment” and must agree to policies like closing its diversity programs, cooperating with immigration officials and banning face masks.
Harvard refused, with the university president, Alan Garber, saying Harvard “will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights”. Trump responded by freezing $2.2bn in grants and $60m in contracts to the university. During this rebuttal, Trump and his allies called for the university to lose its tax-exempt status.
Harvard is now attempting to walk a fine line. The college has in recent days renamed its office of equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging to “community and campus life” and shared students’ information with immigration authorities, according to the Harvard Crimson.
Most US colleges and universities are granted tax-exempt status because they have educational missions. Charities and religious groups often get this status as well. This status means organizations do not have to pay taxes and allows people who donate to them to write off those donations on their taxes, an enticement for donors.
Tax-exempt organizations also must refrain from political campaign activity and cannot influence legislation. Their earnings, if there are any, go back into the organization rather than to individuals or shareholders.
Other non-profits have worried that Trump could seek to revoke their tax-exempt status. Several non-profit employees previously told the Guardian their organizations feared such overreach and have been cautious about their work because of it. They also said they were not sure how they would defend themselves legally if Trump went after their status, given his attacks on law firms.
Legislation that passed the House would give the executive branch broad power to go after non-profits in the name of fighting “terrorism”. The so-called “non-profit killer bill” has not gone up for a vote in the Senate.
