IRS: NAACP OK

It took almost two years but the IRS has concluded that the NAACP did not violate the group’s tax exempt status. The investigation was based on remarks made during the 2004 presidential campaign which criticized George Bush. From the Washington Post:

In a letter released yesterday by the NAACP, the IRS said the group, the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization, “continued to qualify” as tax-exempt.

[…]

The commissioner said the investigation of the NAACP was undertaken because two congressional leaders, whom he declined to name, requested it. They were unhappy because Bond criticized Bush in a speech in July 2004, saying his administration preached racial neutrality and practiced racial division.

[…]

After filing four freedom-of-information requests, NAACP lawyers discovered that far more than two members of Congress called for an investigation and that all were Republicans.

Republican Sens. Lamar Alexander (Tenn.) and Susan Collins (Maine) called for the investigation.

Others included Rep. Jo Ann S. Davis (R-Va.) and then-Rep. Larry Combest (R-Tex.). Former GOP representatives Joe Scarborough of Florida, who now hosts a talk show, and Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., currently governor of Maryland, also requested a probe.

So, one of our local representatives was involved in this. Wonder if Shawn O’Donnell knows?

Interesting point on the investigation:

Angela Ciccolo, an NAACP lawyer, noted that although Bond’s remarks were made in July 2004, the investigation did not begin until October, just when the NAACP was attempting to register voters. “The timing of the investigation is critical,” she said.

I’m glad to see that the investigation is over and that the NAACP has been vindicated.