Donald J. Trump Foundation

The Donald J. Trump Foundation is a private foundation controlled by Donald J. Trump and members of his family.

Mr. Trump created the foundation in 1988 to receive the proceeds from the publication of his book, Trump: The Art of the Deal. In the following years, organizations made donations to the foundation in exchange for personal appearances by Mr. Trump. For example, the top donors to the foundation from 2004 to 2014 were Vince and Linda McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment. They jointly donated $5 million to the foundation after Trump appeared at WrestleMania in 2007 and 2009.^[1]

Because the foundation is structured as a private foundation rather than a public charity, there are limitations on how it can raise funds from the general public. On September 30, 2016 the New York State Attorney General's office issued a "Notice of Violation" to the Trump Foundation, ordering it to immediately stop all fundraising in New York and to file its registration and all required past audits within 15 days, or risk being "deemed to be a continuing fraud on the people of the State of New York".^[2] Under the law, the foundation may eventually be required to return all donations it had solicited since inception.^[2][3][4] The notice alleged the foundation has not been in compliance with New York law because it had failed to re-register in New York State as a "7A level charitable organization", as required for charities that solicit $25,000 or more a year from outside donors. The foundation had been registered in New York under the state's Estates, Powers and Trusts Law with a designation intended for self-funded private foundations.^[2]

The foundation's largest grant to date has been a $264,631 grant to the Central Park Conservancy to renovate the fountain in front of the Plaza Hotel in New York City.

External links[edit]

• Charity Navigator listing for Donald J. Trump Foundation

References[edit]

1. ↑ Missing from Trump's list of charitable giving: His own personal cash (April 10, 2016).
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2} Steve Eder, State Attorney General Orders Trump Foundation to Cease Raising Money in New York, New York Times (October 2, 2016).
3. ↑ Tom LoBianco, NY AG orders Trump Foundation to cease fundraising, CNN (October 2, 2016).
4. ↑ Letter to Trump Foundation From New York Attorney General's Office (republished by the New York Times) (October 2, 2016).