Washington Post Editorial: “Did tax-exempt groups mislead the IRS on political spending?”
The Washington Post
Did tax-exempt groups mislead the IRS on political spending?
January 18, 2013
Another group, Crossroads GPS, which was a major player in the Republican campaign, is also applying for 501(c)(4) status. Crossroads maintains that it adheres to the law and its direct electioneering activity was less than half of its overall activity. Crossroads checked “Yes” in response to the political question, according to ProPublica.
It’s not only conservative groups that seek 501(c)(4) status; some backing liberal causes have also launched political ads in recent years.
About $322 million was poured into campaigns by these social welfare groups in the 2012 election cycle, ProPublica said. Before this spending grows larger in the next cycle, the IRS should provide clear guidance on how much political activity is appropriate for a social welfare organization. Certainly, there’s nothing wrong with some politics. But it is another thing when tax-exempt status is transformed into a license for shielding campaign donors from public view. That’s an abuse — and needs to be stopped.
Note: Democracy 21, joined by the Campaign Legal Center, has a petition pending at the IRS that calls on the agency to issue new rules to provide the kind of clear guidance that the enclosed editorial calls for regarding eligibility for tax-exempt status as a section 501(c)(4) “social welfare” organization.