Sen. Grassley probes top foundations' China funding, nonprofit status

Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, head of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he is probing the Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, and Rockefeller Brothers Fund to determine if their funding of programs in China violated nonprofit tax rules. Grassley wrote formal letters to the three organizations last month saying that “according to recent reports, [your organizations], through grants and direct payments, have funded the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its allies,” adding, “I am writing today to ask you whether these reports are true or not and, if true, how your organization’s conduct comports with 501(c)(3) requirements.” The reports he referenced were largely from conservative publications: the Washington Examiner, the Free Beacon, and the Daily Caller. The letters also cite reports from the Chinese government-backed Global Times and Forbes. Grassley also states in the letters that tax-exempt nonprofit organizations, or 501(c)(3) organizations, may lose tax-exempt status if they fail to follow rules, including direct grants for foreign governments or using their funding for anything other than a charitable purpose. The Ford Foundation, the Gates Foundation, and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund say they have followed the law in their funding and denied any wrongdoing. In the letter to the Ford Foundation, Grassley said that reports indicated that the Ford Foundation provided nearly $10 million to assist the Chinese government in its Belt and Road Initiative and that most of the foundation’s money went to state-run or Chinese Communist Party-run universities. The Ford Foundation, in a statement to Devex, said it “carries out its philanthropic activities worldwide with independence and integrity and in full compliance with all applicable laws.” The foundation’s grants focus on reducing poverty and injustice, strengthening democratic values, promoting international cooperation, and advancing human achievement, the foundation wrote. “It is of utmost importance to us that our funds are used for charitable purposes in alignment with our mission and values, and we have robust controls in place to ensure that each grant is expended only for its intended objective,” the foundation said. In his letter to the Gates Foundation, Grassley noted that recent reports state the foundation provided grants and direct payments to the Chinese Communist Party and its allies, including funding to the government for public health initiatives. A spokesperson at the Gates Foundation told Devex that it has submitted its response to the Senate Judiciary Committee letter. “The Gates Foundation complies with all laws governing our charitable work and tax-exempt status, and our grantmaking is focused solely on advancing our mission to help people live healthy, productive lives,” the spokesperson wrote. Grassley cited similar allegations in the Rockefeller Brothers Fund letter, saying that, according to reports, it provided millions of dollars in funding to organizations that are part of, or connected to, the Chinese government, including the Society of Entrepreneurs of Ecology Foundation that partnered with the Chinese government on the Belt and Road Initiative. The Rockefeller Brothers Fund told Devex in a statement that it “supports charitable projects in China to address environmental issues with global impact. All RBF grantmaking, including our support for efforts in China, undergoes robust due diligence to ensure full compliance with all applicable U.S. laws and regulations.” Update, Nov. 20, 2025: This article has been updated with a response from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.