Your Washington Desk:
Rep. Gingrey votes to rein in IRS, protect First Amendment
Rep. Phil Gingrey, M.D., today voted in favor of H.R. 3865, the “Stop Targeting of Political Beliefs by the IRS Act,” a measure which passed in the House of Representatives by a 243-176 margin. The bill, which Rep. Gingrey co-sponsored, prohibits the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from finalizing their proposed regulations that significantly limit First Amendment rights of 501(c)(4) organizations.
“Even after being caught red-handed last year, the Obama administration still hasn’t learned its lesson,” said Rep. Gingrey. “Today’s vote is a critical step in holding the IRS accountable. Its latest proposed rule clearly shows that administration officialshave doubled-down on their betrayal of public trust, and would rather play politics than preserve First Amendment Rights. All Americans – regardless of political affiliation – should be outraged at this behavior. I will continue fighting to restore trust in our federal agencies and freedom in the political process.”
House GOP Conference background:
Under regulations in place for over fifty years, an organization is eligible for a tax exemption under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code if it is primarily engaged in promoting social welfare. These organizations may engage in some political campaign intervention as long as the activities remain secondary to their primary social welfare purpose. Non-partisan get-out-the vote (GOTV) efforts, voter registration drives, and candidate forums near an election are not considered political campaign intervention under current law. However, under the proposed rules published in November of 2013, the IRS would drastically expand its’ definition of political activities to include — among other things — GOTV, voter registration, and candidate forums, effectively eliminating the ability of (c)(4) organizations to participate in the political process. If they engage in these activities, they could jeopardize their exempt status. The proposed regulations are clearly directed at the Administration’s critics, the very same kind of groups that the IRS targeted from 2010-2012. Treasury claims that confusion of 501(c)(4) regulations at the IRS led to the targeting revealed in May 2013, thus the need for a rule change. The Committee on Ways and Means investigation has revealed that there was no confusion at the IRS and that these regulations have been under consideration since at least 2011.
Comments ( 0 )