The Chronicle of Philanthropy
New Effort Rallies Americans to Donate Tax Cuts to Charity
December 29, 2010, By Suzanne Perry
If you don't think Congress should have extended the Bush-era tax cuts this month, why not donate your own tax savings to charity? That's an idea that three professors are promoting on a new Web site called Give It Back for Jobs.
"Americans who have the means should collectively give back our Bush tax cuts by making donations to organizations that promote fairness, economic growth, and a vibrant middle class," it says.
The site, which helps people calculate their own tax cut under the deal that President Obama struck with House Republicans, was created by Jacob Hacker, a professor of political science, and Daniel Markovits, a professor of law, at Yale University; and Robert Hockett, a professor of law at Cornell University.
They say on their site that the tax package, which extends for two years tax cuts that were introduced during President George W. Bush's administration, "disproportionately benefited the wealthiest Americans," while incomes for most other Americans have stagnated over the past decade.
Critics of the deal should help "create a shadow fiscal policy," they say, by donating to one of four charities: the Children's Aid Society, Habitat for Humanity, Nurse-Family Partnership, or the Salvation Army.
Donors can pledge a specific amount on the new site but are then directed to the charity Web sites to make the gift. Mr. Markovits said in an e-mail that the professors selected the charities because they were "highly rated organizations that devote substantial portions of their efforts to domestic jobs, housing, and health care"-areas that are vital to economic recovery for the middle class. He said they hope to add a feature that will also allow visitors to select their own charities.
The Web site does not yet have the capability to calculate the amount that people have pledged but should be able to do that shortly, he added.
Mr. Markovits said the professors are trying to make the point that philanthropy can be more political. The site, he said, "seeks both to raise money privately and to change public policy."
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