Bloomberg: Harvard Faces New Threat of State Tax on $51 Billion Endowment
Bloomberg: “The federal scrutiny could bring new interest in the Massachusetts bills about Harvard’s tax treatment, said state Representative Simon Cataldo, a Democrat who introduced the legacy admissions bill last year.
“The shortcomings of how some prominent universities have addressed antisemitism has led to scrutiny of their practices in many different areas, including the fact that taxpayers are in essence paying for preferential treatment on billions of dollars they hold in their endowments,” Cataldo said. “I say that as a Jewish legislator who is profoundly concerned about antisemitism on campus.”
Harvard didn’t respond to a question asking for comment about the bills.
Harvard, the oldest and richest college in the US, has long been a target for its immense wealth. The House Ways and Means Committee is investigating the tax-exempt status of Harvard, MIT and two other universities.
The preferential tax treatment given to Harvard adversely affects the state coffers, Cataldo said.
“Taxpayers and the public at large are rightfully looking at the university’s conduct and thinking maybe more closely than we have in the past about how much taxpayers are paying for them,” Cataldo said.
The legacy admissions bill would target Harvard, Williams and a half-dozen other colleges that give special preference to the children of almuni. The bill uses a formula determined by endowment value per student to determine fees based on a sliding scale. The money would go to a trust to fund community colleges. Harvard would be assessed about $100 million annually, Cataldo said.”
