Opinion | Tax-Exempt Status Requires Colorblindness

A facts-only brief, written by a local AI model from this article in The Wall Street Journal, November 3, 2026. It may contain mistakes, and it is not the article: the full story is at wsj.com.

An opinion essay argues that the Treasury Department’s proposed rule to enforce colorblindness in tax-exempt schools is a legal correction rather than an expansion of government power. The authors contend that since 1975, the IRS has implicitly allowed institutions to discriminate against Asian, white, and Jewish students while favoring other racial groups. They assert that the proposed regulations would align tax-exempt status with the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard by prohibiting discrimination in admissions, financial aid, and other programs. The writers maintain that tax exemptions are a public compact requiring institutions to promote general welfare without ideological bias.

Background

• The proposed rule would revoke 501(c)(3) status from educational institutions that discriminate based on race, color, or national origin.
• The authors reference the 1983 Supreme Court case Bob Jones University v. U.S., which upheld the IRS’s authority to deny tax exemptions to discriminatory schools.
• The public comment period for the proposed rule closed on November 3.
• The authors identify as fellows at the Hoover Institution in Stanford and Washington.

Read the full article at wsj.com

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