Should the Federal government contribute tax dollars to all 501(c)(3) charities?

No

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by Robert Laws

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Not all 501(c)(3) organizations are charities. This status covers many organizations that are religious, educational and scientific also. However, all of these organizations are established to perform good deeds in the eyes of the founders and their contributors, so I will refer generally to charities from this point to include all of these organizations.

To answer the question of whether Federal tax dollars should be contributed to these organizations, we need to understand the respective roles of government and charities.

Government exists to provide essential services and support to the populace. This includes providing national defense, keeping law and order, providing key infrastructure, etc. Depending on your political ideology, it may also include providing education, health care and many other services. Most people draw a line at some point as to what should be provided by the government and what is beyond the scope of the government's role.

Charities are established to provide additional services and support in areas that the government is either not addressing or is addressing below the level that many people would like (i.e. addressing perceived needs beyond the scope of the government's role). Some charities are very popular, like cancer research charities. Other charities are less popular, focusing on more 'niche' issues, which do not have such broad appeal or support. All charities provide a means for individuals who believe in the cause to voluntarily provide additional support, above and beyond their tax dollars.

If the Federal government contributed tax dollars to all charities, the government is effectively taking more money from individuals than it needs to complete its own programs and removing the individual's right to choose which charities to contribute that extra money to. If a charity *needs* funding support from the government then it is clearly not receiving sufficient funding from the public, which indicates it is not well supported. Conversely, if a charity is worthwhile in the eyes of the public, it will receive sufficient contributions without the need for government assistance.

By providing corporations with 501(c)(3) status, the government is already providing them with many tax benefits, and by providing tax breaks for individuals that contribute to these organizations, the government is stimulating funding for them. The government is therefore providing an environment in which the worthwhile charities can thrive.

Unless a charity is performing a role that the government promised and was elected to perform and the government believes it is best achieved via that charity organization, rather than in a more directly controlled manner, the government should not contribute tax dollars to any 501(c)(3) charity. It should continue to provide the necessities and let the people decide which, if any, of the additional causes are worthy of further support.

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