If the Estate Tax phases in at $5 million in assets, why couldn’t you have a tax on the assets of religious institutions that likewise phases in, taxing only assets that exceed a certain level, say $20 million. Exempt the first $20 million, but tax anything above that at the same rate as if it were owned by a for-profit entity. You could use a similar logic for the assets held be ostensibly not-for-profit organizations. The first $30 million is tax free. Above that is taxable. You would need to carve out certain exemptions – like museums so long as at least 80% of their assets are viewable by the public at least 40 hours per week. Likewise a charity that takes in $100 million but distributes $100 million wouldn’t be taxed. But raising $100 million and then sitting on it for a few decades ought to be taxable. Thoughts?
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