DOJ asks IRS to revoke Harvard’s tax-exempt status

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has formally asked the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to revoke Harvard University’s tax-exempt status, citing the school’s alleged failure to address antisemitism on campus, according to Fox News.

Sources within the Department of Justice told Fox News that the request centers on Harvard’s 501(c)(3) designation and is based on what the administration considers “persistent violations of public trust” related to campus climate and governance. The IRS is expected to issue a decision soon.

The Ivy League institution has already been hit with a freeze on $2.2 billion in federal grants and $60 million in contract value. The funding suspension was announced on Monday after Harvard rejected policy demands outlined by a federal task force convened by the Trump administration.

In a letter to the Harvard community on Monday, University President Alan M. Garber condemned the administration’s actions, describing them as an “unprecedented” effort to control the intellectual conditions of a private university.

“Although some of the demands outlined by the government are aimed at combating antisemitism, the majority represent direct governmental regulation of the ‘intellectual conditions’ at Harvard,” Garber wrote. “They include requirements to ‘audit’ the viewpoints of our student body, faculty, staff, and to ‘reduce the power’ of certain students, faculty, and administrators targeted because of their ideological views.”

Garber said Harvard has informed the administration, through legal counsel, that it will not accept the proposed agreement, citing the school’s First Amendment protections and institutional independence.

“No government—regardless of which party is in power—should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue,” he said.

Garber also defended the university’s record on addressing antisemitism, saying Harvard had taken “many steps” in the past fifteen months and planned to do more. However, he argued that compliance with the administration’s broader demands would compromise the university’s ability to uphold academic freedom.

Trump accused Harvard of ideological bias and administrative incompetence in a social media post on Wednesday. He criticized the school’s decision to hire former mayors Bill de Blasio and Lori Lightfoot, describing them as “two of the worst and most incompetent mayors in the history of our Country,” and accused Harvard of becoming a center for “hate and stupidity.”

Trump also referenced the controversy surrounding former Harvard President Claudine Gay, who resigned amid allegations of plagiarism. He called Harvard “a joke” and said it should no longer receive federal funding.