WASHINGTON – Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., made the following statement today regarding guidance proposed by the IRS on 501(c)(4) groups. Levin is the chairman of the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.
“By law, tax exempt 501(c)(4) groups are supposed to be doing social welfare work, not influencing campaigns using money from undisclosed donors. In a long overdue decision, the IRS is finally proposing using objective, common sense criteria to identify campaign activities by 501(c)(4) organizations and end suspicions it is engaging in political decision making. The specific criteria that have been proposed need to be carefully evaluated, but the general approach of replacing subjective analysis with objective criteria is encouraging, because it promises to reduce concerns about political bias, make tax and campaign laws more consistent, and streamline the review process which will save money for both taxpayers and nonprofits.”
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