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October 15, 2008 4:32:50 PM CDT

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It's Our Tax Money Going to Helmsley's Dogs

Posted Jul 9, 08 8:27 AM CDT in US,  Opinion 

(Newser) – Leona Helmsley’s latest post-mortem shocker—the revelation that she earmarked $8 billion of her charitable bequest for dog welfare—is a perfect illustration of the insanity of our charity laws, writes Ray Madoff for the New York Times. Helmsley isn’t just spending her own money; because charitable donations are tax-free, the government is essentially subsidizing her whims to the tune of $3.6 billion.

"To put it in perspective," he writes, "our contribution to Mrs. Helmsley’s cause equals approximately half of what we spend on Head Start, a program that benefits 900,000 children." Helmsley’s gift, moreover, went into a charitable trust, which need only spend 5% of its wealth a year—including paying trustees and expenses. There should be a limit on the estate tax charitable deduction, Madoff writes, and we should "stop subsidizing immortality" by requiring foundations to spend more of their assets on charitable work.

Source New York Times

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Leona Helmsley and her dog Trouble photographed in Leona Helmsley's Park Lane Hotel apartment. Friday, January 31, 2003 in New York.   (AP Photo/Jennifer Graylock)
Leona Helmsley, is shown in this Jan. 28, 2003, file photo in New York.   (AP Photo/ Louis Lanzano, File)
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dog  • charity  • Leona Helmsley  • estate tax  • tax dodge  • Trouble


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