From the Chronical of Philantrophy:
June 28, 2012, 10:37 am
The Internal Revenue Service is preparing to question some large 501(c)(4) advocacy groups about their political activities, signaling a possible investigation into whether the organizations are violating their nonprofit status, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Holly Paz of the IRS’s tax-exempt division told a conference of certified public accountants Friday that the agency is working on a questionnaire to send to such groups. The agency has not set a date for when the queries will go out.
Sending such a questionnaire is generally considered the first step in an IRS probe, according to the Journal. If the agency determines that 501(c)(4) groups have violated their tax-exempt status by engaging primarily in political work, they could be liable for large tax bills for millions of dollars in prior contributions.
Entities like Republican operative Karl Rove’s Crossroads GPS have provided major support for election advertising in recent years. Such groups, which largely tilt to the right, have been targeted by campaign-finance watchdogs and Democratic lawmakers because as nonprofits they are not required to disclose their donors. Republicans contend that closer federal scrutiny of the advocacy organizations is politically motivated.
This is how those commies bore into the fabic of our government:
“Recruiting notable talent has also been a driving factor for Marlon and Holly Paz. And for this Washington, D.C.- based couple that has included identifying opportunities for the hardest-working attorneys they know—each other.
After meeting at University of Pennsylvania Law School, the couple married, started a family, and set out on what, at times, has seemed like parallel career paths. Marlon, who is originally from Honduras, and Holly, who grew up in Illinois and Pennsylvania, both landed positions as tax lawyers soon after graduating. Marlon got his start at a firm and then made the leap over to the corporation litigation world, but working at the Securities and Exchange Commission had always been his dream job. Holly eventually made her way to the IRS, where she now works as a managing attorney. With her government position, she often came across federal job postings, but one in particular, with the SEC, caught her eye.
It was an “obscure posting,” Marlon recalls, but Holly nevertheless encouraged him to apply. Marlon got the job and eventually rose through the ranks to become senior counsel to the director, where he worked for six years before becoming the principal integrity officer for the Inter-American Development Bank in July.
“All lawyers are naturally competitive people,” Holly notes. “But the one thing I appreciate about our marriage is that we’re not competitive with each other. We celebrate each other’s accomplishments.”
“And it’s usually Holly helping me,” Marlon interjects. “Law is a tough business, whether you’re in private practice or work for the government. It helps to have an ally and someone to share ideas with.”
The Pazes have since done a lot of recruiting for the federal agencies where they’ve been employed. With firsthand knowledge of the confusing and often difficult application processes, they’ve participated in discussions sponsored by the Hispanic bar associations, the African American counsels, and universities in D.C. to talk to young attorneys interested in tax law and government work about how to get their foot in the door.
“I sent in my materials at least 10 times to several agencies and never heard anything,” adds Marlon, the past president of the Hispanic Bar Association of D.C. and an adjunct professor at Georgetown University. “I felt like it went into a black hole. But Holly kept the hope alive. She helped me get an interview, and that led to a job where I spent years doing something I loved. But there are a lot of people like me out there who are unaware of the steps you need to take. It’s not rocket science; there’s just no guidance. We’re trying to help explain the process.””