Griffith R. Harsh IV and Margaret C Whitman Charitable Foundation

Last updated
The Griffith R. Harsh IV and Margaret C Whitman Charitable Foundation
Founded2006
Founder Meg Whitman, Griffith R. Harsh
Type Private foundation
Location
Key people
Trustees Meg Whitman, Griffith R. Harsh
Ayco Company, L.P., a Goldman Sachs Company, is the administrator

The Griffith R. Harsh IV and Margaret C Whitman Charitable Foundation are a Saratoga Springs, New York private foundation managed by Griffith R. Harsh and Meg Whitman. [1] The Atherton, California-based couple, Whitman, the former eBay CEO, and her husband, a Stanford neurosurgeon, formed the foundation by donating 300,000 shares of eBay stock in the last weeks of 2006. [2] In 2007, the first operational year, the foundation made charitable contributions totaling US$125,000 with $100,000 going to the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), assets for the same time period were reported as US$48 million. [1] [2] The foundation also invested US$4 million in offshore hedge funds, $3 million Cayman Island and $1 million in Ireland. [2] Tax and foundation experts say young foundations often give very little away in "their infancy", but the foundation will face penalties if it doesn't give away "five percent of the average annual assets" during 2008. [2]

Contents

The foundation became a point of scrutiny during the 2010 California gubernatorial election, especially during the Republican primary when Whitman's campaign was presenting itself as conservative on various issues and her foundation's donations were shown to be in tension with her stated positions. [2] Ultimately she became the Republican candidate for the gubernatorial election. The foundation was also brought up in the governor debates when she started the foundation "supports higher education and health care" when asked what higher good she was doing with her wealth. [3]

Organization

The couple is the trustees and the foundation is administered by Ayco Company, L.P., a Goldman Sachs company. [4] Whitman was "paid an estimated $475,000 as a member of the board" and Goldman Sachs has been tied to controversies around subprime mortgage crisis and was sued by the Securities and Exchange Commission. [5]

2008

For the foundation's second year they lost about $27 million, mostly in eBay stock. [6] The biggest donation of 2008, $1.15 million, went to a campaign to protect 572 acres of meadows and wetlands outside the resort town Telluride, Colorado, where she and her husband own a condo, valued at $4.8 million, a dude ranch valued at $18 million and 847 acres surrounding a mountain lake that they purchased for $16 million in 2009. [3] The campaign was to prevent the land from being developed into condos and a golf course. [3]

The couple donated an additional 500,000 shares of eBay stock to the foundation, which they valued at the time at more than $8.8 million. [7]

2010 California gubernatorial election

Whitman became the Republican candidate in the 2010 California gubernatorial election. And aspects of her foundation were scrutinized in relation to where she donated monies and how they were held in tension to her "tightly scripted" campaign.

The foundation donated $300,000 to the Environmental Defense Fund's (EDF), an environmental advocacy group, Center for Rivers and Deltas which is "at odds" with Whitman over water policy. [2] [8] The EDF supports water conservation and preservation of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, an environmentally endangered waterway. [8] EDF also supports court decisions that protect endangered species such as the Delta smelt. [8] Whitman during the campaign has given answers "couched in vague language that sounds good" and on the Delta, the issue has stated it is a "humanitarian crisis" that requires coming down on the side of people." [8] She was criticized as writing "huge checks to opponents of California farmers." [9]

"[A]ctions that would draw little notice in the private sector can appear differently when a wealthy individual wades into politics." [2] Barbara O'Connor, director of the Institute for the Study of Politics and Media at California State University-Sacramento, called the documents a "window into the candidates' value systems", she noted if there is a change in that value system as someone moves from business person to politician, "then it's reasonable to question the shift" leading to calls to release their personal tax returns." [2] Her opponent in the race for governor had done so many months prior and calls for her to release her taxes have been made since the beginning of 2010. [10] [11]

The Caymans investments have been a target of politicians in recent years for apparent tax avoidance and tax evasion issues as taxation of private equity and hedge funds vary considerably from country to country. In March 2009 U.S. Senator Carl Levin, (D-Michigan), and Representative Lloyd Doggett, (D-Texas), introduced the "Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act" to "restrict the use of offshore tax havens and abusive tax shelters" in places "such as the Caymans". [2] [12] [13]

As part of the campaign, Whitman was asked if she would join the Billionaire's Pledge started by Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates and multibillionaire investor Warren Buffett. [14] The pledge is for the "world's wealthiest people to donate at least 50% of their fortunes to charities". [15] Whitman, who has a net worth of $1.4 billion and was 326th on Forbes' list of the 400 richest Americans in 2009, stated she said she had donated to "education and the environment and other areas," and would "continue to build our foundation". [14] [15]

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 Griffith R. Harsh IV and Margaret C Whitman Charitable Foundation tax filings, IRS form 990-PF for 2007 Archived 2013-06-29 at the Wayback Machine
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Ken McLaughlin, "Meg Whitman's Charitable Foundation's Biggest Benefactor Was Environmental Group", San Jose Mercury News, November 7, 2009, page 1A.[ permanent dead link ]
  3. 1 2 3 Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross, Meg Whitman Chips In To Protect Homestead, San Francisco Chronicle, October 18, 2010.
  4. ↑ Ina Steiner, "Former eBay CEO Meg Whitman Launches Family Foundation", AuctionBytes.com, May 12, 2008.
  5. ↑ Carla Marinucci and Lance Williams, "Whitman feels heat as Goldman's image tarnishes ", San Francisco Chronicle, April 22, 2010.
  6. ↑ Ken McLaughlin, "Gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman gets another dent in conservative armor", November 17, 2009, San Jose Mercury News. copy
  7. ↑ Samantha Young, Meg Whitman: No plans to give away wealth, Associated Press, October 23, 2010.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Kevin Yamamura, "Poizner, Whitman environmental positions have changed Archived 2010-06-05 at the Wayback Machine ", The Sacramento Bee, October 24, 2010.
  9. ↑ Michael Doyle, "For California politicians, state's drought is big issue", Anchorage Daily News, December 4, 2009.
  10. ↑ Carla Marinucci and Lance Williams, "Whitman lays out her agenda of reform: She admits it was 'a mistake' to avoid political reporters", San Francisco Chronicle, March 13, 2010.
  11. ↑ "Candidates should release tax returns", Long Beach Press-Telegram, January 14, 2010.
  12. ↑ "Senate, House Members Introduce Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act". Archived from the original on 2010-11-03. Retrieved 2010-10-24.
  13. ↑ "Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-11-03. Retrieved 2010-10-24.
  14. 1 2 Samantha Young, "Whitman: No plans to join billionaires' pledge", Associated Press, July 5, 2010.
  15. 1 2 Mark Riddix, "Billionaires who haven't taken the pledge [usurped] ", CNEWS, August 25, 2010.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gray Davis</span> Governor of California from 1999 to 2003

Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis Jr. is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 until he was recalled and removed from office in 2003. He is the second state governor in U.S. history to have been recalled, after Lynn Frazier of North Dakota.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerry Brown</span> Governor of California (1975–1983; 2011–2019)

Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected secretary of state of California in 1970; Brown later served as mayor of Oakland from 1999 to 2007 and attorney general of California from 2007 to 2011. He was both the oldest and sixth-youngest governor of California due to the 28-year gap between his second and third terms. Upon completing his fourth term in office, Brown became the fourth longest-serving governor in U.S. history, serving 16 years and 5 days in office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christine Todd Whitman</span> American politician and author (born 1946)

Christine Temple Whitman is an American politician and author who served as the 50th governor of New Jersey from 1994 to 2001 and as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2003. As of 2024, Whitman is the only woman to have served as governor of New Jersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larry Elder</span> American talk radio host and attorney (born 1952)

Laurence Allen Elder is an American conservative political commentator and talk radio host. He hosts The Larry Elder Show, based in California. The show began as a local program on Los Angeles radio station KABC in 1993 and ran until 2008, followed by a second run on KABC from 2010 to 2014. The show is nationally syndicated, first through ABC Radio Networks from 2002 to 2007 and then Salem Media Group from 2015 to 2022. He maintains ties to The Epoch Times, a far-right newspaper published by the Falun Gong movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Koch</span> American billionaire heir and businessman (1940–2019)

David Hamilton Koch was an American businessman, political activist, philanthropist, and chemical engineer. In 1970, he joined the family business: Koch Industries, the second largest privately held company in the United States. He became president of the subsidiary Koch Engineering in 1979 and became a co-owner of Koch Industries in 1983. Koch served as an executive vice president of Koch Industries until he retired due to health issues in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meg Whitman</span> American business executive and diplomat (born 1956)

Margaret Cushing Whitman is an American business executive, diplomat, and politician serving as the United States ambassador to Kenya since 2022. Whitman was president and chief executive officer (CEO) of eBay from 1998 to 2008. Afterwards, she became president and CEO of Hewlett Packard Enterprise from 2011 to 2015, during the company's major split. She then served as the CEO of Quibi from its launch in 2018 until its closure in 2020. A member of the Republican Party, she ran for governor of California but was defeated by former governor Jerry Brown in California's 2010 gubernatorial election. Whitman was a senior presidential campaign official for Republican Mitt Romney in both 2008 and 2012, although she supported Democrats Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden in the 2016 presidential election and the 2020 presidential election, respectively.

George Bruce Kaiser is an American billionaire businessman. He is the chairman of BOK Financial Corporation in Tulsa, Oklahoma. As of September 2021, he is the 476th richest person in the world and was, in 2012, one of the top 50 American philanthropists.

Charles Bartlett Johnson is an American billionaire businessman, with an estimated current net worth of around $6.1 billion. He was chief executive officer of Franklin Templeton Investments from 1957 to 2004. He is a Republican megadonor and part owner of the San Francisco Giants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Patrick Johnson</span> American voice-over actor (born 1969)

Ben Patrick Johnson is an American voice actor, author and blogger, Foundation Director, and human rights activist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 California gubernatorial election</span>

The 2010 California gubernatorial election was held November 2, 2010, to elect the governor of California. The primary elections were held on June 8, 2010. Because constitutional office holders in California have been prohibited from serving more than two terms in the same office since November 6, 1990, incumbent Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger was ineligible to run for re-election due to term limits. Former governor Jerry Brown, to whom the term limits did not apply due to a grandfather clause, defeated Meg Whitman in the general election and was sworn into office on January 3, 2011. As of 2024, this remains the most recent time the governor's office in California has changed partisan control.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hansjörg Wyss</span> Swiss businessman and Democratic megadonor

Johann Georg Wyss, known as Hansjörg Wyss, is a Swiss billionaire businessman and donor to politically liberal and environmental causes in the United States. He is the founder and former president and chairman of Synthes, a medical device manufacturer. His Wyss Foundation has more than $2 billion in assets. As of 2023, Wyss had a net worth of US$4.7 billion, according to Forbes. Having donated hundreds of millions of dollars to environmental causes, he has more recently increased his donations to groups promoting progressive causes. He is the co-owner of Premier League football club Chelsea. And he is one of the anchor shareholders of Lalique Group, with Müller Handels AG Schweiz, Dharampal Satyapal Limited, Hansjörg Wyss and Claudio Denz, they hold 42.67% of Lalique Group shares. In 2019, Hansjörg Wyss and Swiss entrepreneur Silvio Denz acquired the historic Glenturret Distillery in Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MacKenzie Scott</span> American philanthropist and novelist (born 1970)

MacKenzie Scott is an American novelist, philanthropist, and ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. As of June 2024, she has a net worth of US$36.1 billion, owning a 4% stake in Amazon. As such, Scott came out of her divorce as the third-wealthiest woman in the United States and the 47th-wealthiest individual in the world. Scott was named in the list of world's 100 most powerful women by Forbes in 2023 and 2021; including one of Time's 100 most influential people in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010 California Proposition 23</span> Referendum on environmental regulations

Proposition 23 was a California ballot proposition that was on the November 2, 2010 California statewide ballot. It was defeated by California voters during the statewide election by a 23% margin. If passed, it would have suspended AB 32, a law enacted in 2006, legally referred to its long name, the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. Sponsors of the initiative referred to their measure as the California Jobs Initiative while opponents called it the Dirty Energy Prop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Steyer</span> American businessman (born 1957)

Thomas Fahr Steyer is an American climate investor, businessman, hedge fund manager, philanthropist, environmentalist, and liberal activist. Steyer is the founder and former co-senior-managing-partner of Farallon Capital, and the co-founder of OneCalifornia Bank, which became Beneficial State Bank, an Oakland-based community development bank. Farallon Capital manages $20 billion in capital for institutions and high-net-worth individuals. The firm's institutional investors include college endowments and foundations. Steyer served on the board of trustees at Stanford University from 2007 to 2017. He was formerly a partner and member of the executive committee at Hellman & Friedman, a San Francisco–based private equity firm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane Kim</span> American politician

Jane Jungyon Kim is an American attorney and politician, and the first Korean American elected official in San Francisco. She represented San Francisco's District 6 on the Board of Supervisors between 2011 and 2019. She is a member of the San Francisco's Democratic County Central Committee. She is executive director of the California Working Families Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koch network</span> Charles G. and David H. Koch and their activities in US politics

Charles G. and David H. Koch (1940–2019), sometimes referred to as the Koch brothers, have become famous for their financial and political influence in United States politics with a libertarian, more specifically, right-libertarian or American-style libertarian political stance. From around 2004 to 2019, with "foresight and perseverance", the brothers organized like-minded wealthy libertarian-oriented conservatives, spent hundreds of millions of dollars of their own money to build an "integrated" and "stealth" network of think tanks, foundations, "grassroots" movements, academic programs, advocacy and legal groups to "destroy the prevalent statist paradigm" and reshape public opinion to favor minimal government. As of mid 2018, the media has been encouraged to refer to the "Koch network" rather than the "Koch brothers".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 California gubernatorial election</span>

The 2014 California gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 2014, to elect the governor of California, concurrently with elections for the rest of California's executive branch, as well as elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

Sanford Ned Diller was an American billionaire and the founder of Prometheus Real Estate Group.

Laura Arnold is an American philanthropist and co-founder of Arnold Ventures LLC. In addition to serving as co-chair of Arnold Ventures, Arnold became a founding partner of the REFORM Alliance, a national criminal justice advocacy organization in 2019. Prior to her work in philanthropy, she was a mergers-and-acquisitions lawyer and an executive at Cobalt International Energy.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.