‘Jewel-Box’ Museums Are the Wealthy’s Latest Tax Dodge Scheme

Private foundations are increasingly used by the wealthy to garner huge tax deductions and retain control and enjoyment of valuable assets through creation of so-called jewel-box museums.

We’ve talked about the need for increased scrutiny for 501(c)(3) organizations in the political arena. In the hands of rule skirters, these organizations—which the IRS calls private foundations—are something of a Swiss Army knife for questionable behavior. When they aren’t being used to funnel dark money into politics, they make excellent tools of tax avoidance for the mansion class.

As always, increased funding for enforcement is necessary to curtail these abuses. From there, ...