NIMBY Charities

Neighborhood organizations often advocate for land use policies and decisions that curtail development and entry into the neighborhood. This “not in my backyard” (NIMBY) disposition echoes a long history of exclusionary activity by these organizations and reflects a broader tendency to operate in furtherance of property values and other private interests. Due to substantive and procedural deficiencies in federal tax policy, these organizations often operate as 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charities, a status rightly reserved for organizations that generate broad public benefits. This Article argues for the adoption of clear substantive and procedural rules that restrict charitable status to organizations that either provide tangible benefits to the general public or target their benefits to a materially distressed community