system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Many billionaires like Bill Gates "give away" billions of dollars, but they give it to their own foundations, who dole it out at a trickle. Could they take this money back if they needed/wanted to?

I'm sure they'd have to pay taxes and penalties on it, but if they wanted to for some reason could they transfer funds from their foundation into their personal account, or just start spending it on themselves instead of on charitable causes?
gpt
No, this would be considered "self-dealing" by the IRS and is prohibited by law. An excise tax of 5% of the amount of money involved will be applied to everyone involved in the act of self-dealing and the act is supposed to be corrected. If it isn't corrected then a penalty of 200% of the amount involved is applied to the self-dealer and another 50% to any foundation manager who refused to correct the self-dealing.

So no, it wouldn't be accessible.