Tax docs show Trump library is counting on a $1 billion fundraising haul

Claire Heddles, Miami Herald on Nov 19, 2025

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Donald Trump’s presidential library foundation plans to raise almost a billion dollars in tax-exempt contributions over the next two years to build and operate his high-rise legacy project in downtown Miami, according to new tax filings.

The foundation’s massive fundraising projections — during a period while Trump is still in office — are almost 50 times as much as Barack Obama’s presidential library raised in its first three years.

Trump’s foundation plans to bring in $50 million this year, $300 million in 2026 and $600 million in 2027 through “gifts, grants and contributions,” according to the foundation’s IRS application for tax-exempt status, obtained Tuesday by the Miami Herald.

Most of the money the foundation has raised this year has been through high-profile settlements with media companies — including the ABC network, Paramount and Meta. The unusual funding source funnels millions from media companies whose coverage he’s criticized into the foundation’s mission to “preserve, interpret, and promote understanding of the life, leadership, and public service of President Donald J. Trump.”

The media settlements also proved pivotal in helping Trump’s foundation get expedited approval of its tax-exempt status during the government shutdown, the new tax records show.

The Trump Foundation sent a letter to the IRS on Oct. 10 requesting “expedited processing” of its application for tax-exempt status, pointing to lawsuit settlement money sitting in limbo until the foundation was an approved charity.

“Without timely approval of the Foundation’s exempt status, these funds will remain inaccessible and the project’s initial phases will be significantly delayed,” the Trump foundation’s treasurer wrote to the IRS.

Their application was approved within 10 days — in the middle of the longest government shutdown in U.S. history that otherwise halted and delayed services across the federal government.

An IRS letter to the foundation on Oct. 20, three weeks into the government shutdown, announced: “We’re pleased to tell you we determined you’re exempt from federal income tax.”

For many organizations, it takes months for the IRS to process tax-exempt status requests. According to the IRS, 80% of applications for tax-exempt status — like the one Trump’s foundation filed — are determined within six months.

First look at library plans

The foundation’s application for tax-exempt status — provided to the Herald by the library foundation — offers a glimpse into plans that have otherwise been shrouded in secrecy. There were no public renderings available before votes by the Miami Dade College Board of Trustees and by the governor and Florida Cabinet to transfer prime downtown Miami land to Trump’s foundation at no cost.

The foundation plans to spend the next “4-5 years” on “Site acquisition, design, capital fundraising, facility construction, acquisition, and preliminary cataloging of artifacts,” the records show.

Then the library will enter its second phase of operations “with core archival access and selected exhibitions, expanding gradually into full programming as staffing, collections, and resources grow.”

The foundation is also planning to operate a gift shop and scholarship program for college students studying history, political science, public service or library sciences. Students will be eligible if they are citizens or “lawful permanent residents.”

The foundation’s application does not mention the Miami Dade College land trustees voted to give away for Trump’s library, or any specific concessions for Miami Dade College students.

The application does, however, detail how it has spent $6.8 million so far this year. That spending includes $130k for fundraising, $400,000 to pay its directors and trustees — which included Trump’s son Eric Trump and son-in-law Michael Boulos — and $490,000 on “professional fees.”

In 2025, the foundation is also spending $3 million on “architecture and engineering;” $2 million on “other building costs;” and $500,000 on “design;” and about $250,000 on “site evaluation & planning.”