The city of Boston recently asked local nonprofit organizations to help pay for services, despite their tax-exempt status.

The Boston Globe reports that many of the nonprofits pay payments in lieu of taxes, but that the fees often don't cover public services needed at the institutions. As a result, city officials are asking nonprofits to pay 25 percent of what they would be charged if they were engaged in a for-profit business. The plan hopes to increase revenue from $15 million a year to $48 million over the next five years.

"We're looking for fairness for Boston taxpayers and the nonprofits," Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino told the paper. "This isn't something we drew up on the back of an envelope. It's something we put a lot of thought into."

Other cities in the Bay State have been asking for more funds from not-for-profit organizations. Waltham Patch reports that the Waltham City Coucil recently approved establishing a PILOT program.