CEI Joins Coalition Letter Supporting the Preventing IRS Abuse and Protecting Free Speech Act
Dear Congressman Roskam,
On behalf of millions of taxpayers across America, we write to endorse the Preventing IRS Abuse and Protecting Free Speech Act, H.R. 4916, and urge its swift passage.
This important legislation, an identical version of which was passed by the House of Representatives last year, will help prevent future Internal Revenue Service (IRS) abuse and protect First Amendment freedoms of speech and association by eliminating the Schedule B form for 501(c) organizations that contain sensitive identifiable information on contributors to those 501(c) organizations.
As acknowledged by the IRS itself, Schedule B information is inapplicable to the legally permissible handling of 501(c) organization tax filings. Eliminating Schedule B will not only make tax compliance easier, but also help limit the ability of the IRS and others, including state officials with access to the information, to chill free speech and civic participation among the public.
As you are well aware, First Amendment free speech and association rights have come under assault in recent years, with the IRS at the center of the misbehavior. In multiple high-profile confirmed cases, the IRS has leaked sensitive, private Schedule B information that it had no right or business making public.
As only one example, the agency agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) after an IRS official provided NOM’s Schedule B to the adversarial organization Human Rights Campaign, which proceeded to publish it. Revelations of leaked information, in addition to instances in which the IRS targeted organizations on the basis of perceived ideology, policy positions and names to deny or delay approval of nonprofit legal status, demonstrate that the threat to freedoms of speech, association and petitioning of government are all too real.
Congress must therefore take this opportunity as tax reform begins to strengthen First Amendment protections and prevent future IRS abuse, given the agency’s established record of negligent oversight and outright abuse of power. The Preventing IRS Abuse and Protecting Free Speech Act would address those important goals, and constitute a victory for private citizens and organizations across the political spectrum.
For their part, IRS officials have gone on record in support of eliminating the Schedule B form requirement for some 501(c) classifications. As reported, in December 2015, for example, IRS Director of Exempt Organizations
Tamara Ripperda addressed the possibility of eliminating the Schedule B:
The IRS is considering eliminating Schedule B of the Form 990, which asks for the names and addresses of an exempt organization’s contributors and for certain information about contributions received. Tax analysts reported that, at a program sponsored by the Urban Institute, Tammy Ripperda (Director of Exempt Organizations at the IRS) questioned whether the IRS should ask for the names and addresses of contributors, given that this information is not made public, and whether there is a need for the information from a federal tax law enforcement standpoint.
It is therefore clear that the Schedule B form requirement is unnecessary, and only perpetuates the possibility of abuse by IRS officials or outside wrongdoers, including state officials with access to the information. Accordingly, we urge all Members of Congress to support H.R. 4916, legislation that will finally eliminate the Schedule B form requirement for 501(c) groups.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Mazzella
President
Center for Individual Freedom
Leigh Hixon
Senior Director of Policy Relations
Alabama Policy Institute
Lisa B. Nelson
CEO
ALEC Action
Michael Farris
President, CEO & General Counsel
Alliance Defending Freedom
Phil Kerpen
President
American Commitment
Steve Pociask
President
American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research
Allen Hebert
Chairman
American-Chinese Fellowship of Houston
Dan Schneider
Executive Director
American Conservative Union
Sean Noble
President
American Encore
Mark J. Fitzgibbons
President of Corporate Affairs
American Target Advertising, Inc.
Tim Wildmon
President
American Family Association
Brent Wm. Gardner
Chief Government Affairs Officer
Americans for Prosperity
Grover Norquist
President
Americans for Tax Reform
Brenda Baller
Vice-President
Baller & Co.
Rich Bott, President
Dick Bott, Founder
Bott Radio Network
Will Swaim
President
California Policy Center
Steve Buckstein
Senior Policy Analyst and Founder
Cascade Policy Institute
Andrew F. Quinlan
President
Center for Freedom and Prosperity
Olivia Grady
Senior Fellow
Center for Worker Freedom
Chuck Muth
President
Citizen Outreach
Twila Brase RN, PHN
President and Co-founder
Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom
William L. Walton
Chairman
CNP Action, Inc.
Dawn Wildman
Policy Director
Coalition for Policy Reform
Kent Lassman
President and CEO
Competitive Enterprise Institute
Dan Caldwell
Executive Director
Concerned Veterans for America
Penny Nance
President and CEO
Concerned Women for America
Richard A. Viguerie
Chairman
ConservativeHQ.com
James N. Clymer
Vice President
Conservative Legal Defense and Education Fund
Matthew Kandrach
President
Consumer Action for a Strong Economy
Ron Pearson
President
Council for America
Tom Schatz
President
Council for Citizens Against Government Waste
Katie McAuliffe
Executive Director
Digital Liberty
Rebekah Gantner
Executive Director
Eagle Forum Education & Legal Defense Fund
Tim Hoefer
Executive Director
Empire Center for Public Policy
Grant Callen
President
Empower Mississippi Foundation
Gary Marx
Former Executive Director
Faith and Freedom Coalition
Chad Connelly
President
Faith Wins
Paul Weber
President & CEO
Family Policy Alliance
James C. Dobson Ph.D.
Founder & President
Family Talk
Tarren Bragdon
Chief Executive Officer
Foundation for Government Accountability
Brian Minnich
Executive Vice President
Freedom Foundation
Nathan Nascimento
Executive Vice President
Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce
Adam Brandon
President
FreedomWorks
George Landrith
President
Frontiers of Freedom
David Barnes
Policy Director
Generation Opportunity
Victor Riches
President & CEO
Goldwater Institute
Christopher L. Carmouche
Executive Director
GrassTopsUSA
Joseph R.Gregory
President and CEO
Gregory Management Company
Mario Lopez
President
Hispanic Leadership Fund
John Tillman
CEO
Illinois Policy Institute
Carrie L. Lukas
President
Independent Women’s Forum
Heather R. Higgins
President and CEO
Independent Women’s Voice
Andrew Langer
President
Institute for Liberty
Kory Swanson
President & CEO
John Locke Foundation
Samuel B. Casey
General Counsel
Jubilee Campaign
Dave Trabert
President
Kansas Policy Institute
Seton Motley
President
Less Government
Connor Boyack
President
Libertas Institute
Mat Staver
Founder and Chairman
Liberty Counsel
Penny Pullen
President
Life Advocacy Resource Project
The Honorable Bob McEwen
U.S. House of Representatives Former Member,
Ohio
L. Brent Bozell III
Founder and President
Media Research Center
Cleta Mitchell, Esq.
Attorney for Nonprofit Organizations
Gregg Keller
Chairman
Missouri Century Foundation
Brent Mead
CEO
Montana Policy Institute
Ted Baehr
Publisher
Movieguide
Willes K Lee
President
National Federation of Republican Assemblies
Chris W. Cox
Executive Director
National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action
Pete Sepp
President
National Taxpayers Union
John A. Tsarpalas
President
Nevada Policy Research Institute
Jonathan Small
President
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Sally C. Pipes
President and CEO
Pacific Research Institute
Caroline Lewis
Owner
Percipio Communications
Ed Martin
President
Phyllis Schlafly Eagles
Jim Vokal
Chief Executive Officer
Platte Institute
Lorenzo Montanari
Executive Director
Property Rights Alliance
Nancy Schulze
Founder, Republican Congressional Wives Speakers
Co-Chair, Congressional Prayer Caucus Wives Council
Joe Calvert
President
Rabon Calvert Interests
Mike Stenhouse
CEO
Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity
The Honorable Richard T. Schulze (R-PA)
Former Member of Congress
James L. Martin
Founder/Chairman
60 Plus Association
Karen Kerrigan
President & CEO
Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council
Tracie Sharp
President & CEO
State Policy Network
Kristan Hawkins
President
Students for Life of America
David Williams
President
Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Judson Phillips
President
Tea Party Nation
Jenny Beth Martin
Co-Founder
Tea Party Patriots
Lynn Taylor
President
Tertium Quids
Robert Alt
President & CEO
The Buckeye Institute
Brett Healy
President
The John K. MacIver Institute for Public Policy
Daniel Garza
President
The Libre Initiative
Matthew Gagnon
Chief Executive Officer
The Maine Heritage Policy Center
Charles Sauer
Founder and President
The Market Institute
Stephen T. Whelan
Chairman
The Witherspoon Institute
C. Preston Noell III
President
Tradition, Family, Property, Inc.
Bill Dallas
CEO
United in Purpose
Dann Mead Smith
President
Washington Policy Center
David A Keene
Editor at Large
Washington Times
Alan P. Dye
Partner
Webster, Chamberlain & Bean
Floyd Brown
Chairman
Western Center for Journalism
J C White
President
Almont Homes
Somers H. White
Former Arizona State Senator
Source: https://cei.org/content/cei-joins-coalition-letter-supporting-preventing-irs-abuse-and-protecting-free-speech-act
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