The nation’s most “elite” universities and colleges have been in the crosshairs of Republicans, who have most recently made pro-Palestinian activism on campuses a political rallying cry. Now, there is an appetite in Congress to translate that ire into much higher taxes for higher education institutions.
There’s currently a 1.4% excise tax on the investment income of the endowments of private colleges and universities. Some lawmakers have proposed an increase to 10%. A list of potential revenue raisers circulated by the House Ways and Means Committee suggests increasing it tenfold to 14%.
“Private, public — this is any endowment that I’m in favor of,” Rep. Ralph Norman told NOTUS. “A lot of these universities and colleges are teaching things that I just don’t agree with. They’ve gone rogue.”