02-05-2025
Trump's not alone in wanting Harvard to pay taxes
For years, Boston and Cambridge residents have called on Harvard University to pay more taxes.
Now Harvard is under the spotlight for its tax-exempt status — but not for the same reasons.
Why it matters: A perennial debate over how much Boston's major universities owe local governments has become dwarfed by the Trump administration's escalating fight with Harvard.
The latest: Trump said on the Truth Social platform he owns that his administration will strip Harvard of its tax-exempt status.
This comes as Boston officials and Harvard are renegotiating the terms of Harvard's participation in its Payment In Lieu of Taxes program, to which Harvard has paid just 79% of the amount requested by Boston for the last eight years, the Harvard Crimson reported.
Friction point: The programs in Boston and Cambridge are voluntary, but Boston-area colleges with large swaths of land have come under scrutiny in recent years for not paying more.
Local advocates, including progressive lawmakers who oppose Trump, have called on Harvard and other universities to pay property taxes, or at least higher PILOT-related payments, to support local residents.
How it works: The programs exempt major universities from paying taxes on their institutional properties in exchange for cash payments and investments in city services.
Advocates have argued for years that these universities don't pay their fair share, while increasing student enrollment strains an already fraught housing market.
Since fiscal 2012, Boston's PILOT program has asked certain institutions owning property valued over $15 million to invest 25% of what would have been paid.
Up to half of that could be paid in the form of community services, per a 2024 Boston Municipal Research Bureau report.
By the numbers: Altogether, Bloomberg estimated that Harvard saved $158 million in 2023 on property tax bills in Cambridge and Boston.
The university has paid Boston $33 million over the past 10 years, along with investments in services for Boston residents. (In fiscal 2024, they invested some $22 million, per city of Boston estimates.)
Meanwhile, Harvard has given Cambridge under $5 million annually for its PILOT program. Harvard committed to paying $6 million this year, per the Crimson.
It's unclear how much Harvard has paid Cambridge in services.
The other side: Boston officials, and even the research bureau, have called the PILOT program a success.
A 2024 BMRB report says alternative payment methods — namely a $100-per-student fee other states have imposed — would have a "detrimental effect" on colleges' voluntary participation in the PILOT program.
Yes, but: All of that may become moot for Harvard if it loses its tax-exempt status.
Threat level: The Trump administration has already canceled millions in research grants and clawed back billions of dollars from Harvard, prompting the Ivy League school to sue.
