Under the gun

This year Congress will consider proposals to significantly restrict the access of not-for-profit healthcare organizations to affordable capital and other federal benefits of their tax-exempt status. The federal benefits of tax-exempt status are (1) exemption from federal tax on net income, (2) eligibility for tax-deductible charitable contributions, and (3) access to tax-exempt financing. Of these, the last is probably most important because hospitals' capital needs are substantial and almost always met through the issuance of tax-exempt bonds. In recent years, budget pressures have prompted many state and local governments to challenge the tax-exempt status of not-for-profit organizations. At the federal level, tax-exempt bonds have been under sustained attack for the past 10 years, and tax-exempt organizations have been under scrutiny for the past 4 years. In 1989 several bills were introduced in Congress that would limit some of the benefits of tax exemption. This year the signs are particularly ominous: Budget pressures are severe, no one seems willing to call for "new taxes," and tax-exempt organizations are considered fair game. To preserve their tax-exempt status, not-for-profits must act now to convince congressional decision makers that they deserve their tax exemptions and need them to continue to provide community service.