Should Congress impose mandatory payout rates on donor-advised funds, similar to those required of private foundations?
Ray Madoff, a professor at Boston College Law School, says yes. In a recent New York Times op-ed article, she urged Congress to require DAFs “to distribute all of their assets to real public charities within seven years of their contribution.”
Absent such a requirement, she argued, assets in DAFs “can languish in these charitable holding pens for decades or even centuries (these funds are frequently marketed for their ability to allow donors to create a legacy for future generations).”
Madoff identified Fidelity, Schwab and Goldman Sachs as large institutional sponsors of DAFs.