December 11, 2005
One of the proponents of changes in the governance of nonprofits is the Tax Foundation, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit, nonpartisan research and public education organization that tracks government tax and fiscal activities.
Last month, it issued a report called Charities and Public Goods: The Case for Reforming the Federal Income Tax Deduction for Charitable Gifts. One of the report's main points is that almost 57 percent of charity revenue goes to hospitals and universities.
"Hospitals and universities are the most questionable nonprofits. They are so similar to their for-profit competitors," says Tax Foundation staff economist Andrew Chamberlain, who co-authored the study.
"Over time, the definition of what makes a group a charity has expanded to be far broader than what can really be justified," he continues.