Rep. Tenney Demands IRS Investigate Voter Participating Center

Congresswoman Claudia Tenney has sent a letter to the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) demanding the Voter Participation Center be investigated for potentially violating federal tax rules for tax-exempt charitable organizations.

Tenney’s letter follows reports that the Voter Participation Center is using targeted digital ads to register Democratic-leaning voters but working to exclude groups of voters that are traditionally Republican. As a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, VPC is required to conduct voter registration activities in a neutral and non-partisan manner. Tenney said the organization has extensive financial ties to Democratic micro-targeting firms like the Pivot Group and Mission Control, which suggests potential bias in its voter registration efforts.

Tenney asked the IRS the following questions:

• Will the IRS commit to investigating the Voter Participation Center for potential violations of its legal requirements as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization?
• How does the IRS ensure that VPC and other 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations engaged in voter registration efforts are compliant with statutory requirements prohibiting engagement in political activities?
• Does the IRS examine financial relationships between 501(c)(3) organizations and political consulting firms, like Pivot Group or Mission Control, and determine if the services furnished by these organizations is in accordance with non-partisan requirements for 501(c)(3) organizations?
• If VPC, or any 501(c)(3) organization, was found to have violated statutory requirements by engaging in prohibited political activities, what penalties would IRS impose?
• If the IRS chooses not to audit VPC despite these concerning developments, please provide an explanation, as well as criteria the IRS uses to determine whether to initiate an audit of 501(c)(3) organization for potential political activity violations?

“Tax exempt charitable organizations like the Voter Participation Center are prohibited from engaging in partisan political activities that support or oppose any one party or candidate. As a member of the House Ways and Means Committee and the founder of the House Election Integrity Caucus, I am committed to preventing our tax code from being abused by partisan actors. The IRS must immediately investigate these allegations against the VPC and work to ensure all 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization are complying with statutory requirements,” said Congresswoman Claudia Tenney.

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