In order to foster investment in the community, the federal government should give each working-age American $100 per year to donate to a 501(c)3 non-profit. This would funnel approx. $20 billion to local non-profits, and it can easily be paid for by reducing the tax credit for itemized donations to a maximum of 22% with a floor of $500 for itemized deductions.
Problems to be Solved
- checkPeople feel less invested in the goals of their local community
- checkPhilanthropy is regarded as the province of the wealthy
- checkCauses that the wealthy prefer get more donations
- Philanthropy right now favors interest areas that the wealthy like to support, and the itemized charitable deduction is enjoyed almost entirely by the richest Americans. Making every American a philanthropist would facilitate new interactions in the community and diversify the organizations that are supported. It would also make sure that non-profits could be rewarded more by the people that they serve, increasing their efficiency.
Goals
- checkGet people to donate money locally
- checkMake non-profits more responsive to constituent needs
- checkIncrease civic engagement
- checkShift non-profit interests toward broader goals
As President I will...
- Direct the IRS to create a Prosperity Grant program.
- Each year at the beginning of the year Americans would receive $100 that could only be donated to a 501c3 institution through the same mechanism that they receive the Freedom Dividend/Universal Basic Income.
- Work with Congress to change the tax code to account for Prosperity Grants.