<p>There was a push here a while ago to strip non-profits of their non-profit status if they didn’t spend 5% of their endowment per year on the core mission of their non-profit. It was aimed directly at Harvard by a disgruntled legislator.</p>
<p>And I agree to some extent. Harvard could go tuition-free for around 1% of their endowment per year. For Princeton it would take 2% per year. So why don’t they? They are clearly more interested in piling up money. </p>
<p>And why should some rich person get a tax deduction for donating $30 million to a non-profit that doesn’t need the money and won’t spent it?</p>
<p>We do have PILOT programs, some schools contribute more than others. It’s a big issue because there are a lot of schools in the Boston area, and they are continuously expanding (or trying to) into the surrounding communities and taking property off of the tax roles.</p>