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Paul L. Caron
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Sunday, November 6, 2016

The IRS Scandal, Day 1277: Second Federal Court Rules IRS Targeted Conservative Groups, Orders IRS To Act On Tea Party Group's Tax-Exempt Application Pending Since 2012

IRS Logo 2Washington Times, Judge Orders IRS to Stop Tea Party Targeting, Approve Four-Year-Old Application:

The IRS is still targeting tea party groups for illegal scrutiny by refusing to process applications that have been pending for years, a federal court said in a ruling made public Friday, ordering the tax agency to quit stalling.

U.S. District Judge Michael R. Barrett said the IRS can still either approve or deny the Texas Patriots Tea Party’s application for nonprofit status, but the agency can no longer sit on its hands. And he said the IRS must give the application an honest evaluation without prejudice stemming from the years long targeting.

In a series of stark findings, Judge Barrett ruled that the IRS did in fact single tea party groups out for special scrutiny because of their political viewpoints in opposition to President Obama — undercutting congressional Democrats who said liberal groups faced the same level of targeting.

“The evidence strongly suggests that the IRS initiated the delay because TPTP’s application was perceived at the screening stage to be a Tea Party case,” Judge Barrett, whose courtroom is in Ohio, said in an opinion that was filed earlier under seal, and was only made public after parts of the 29-page ruling were redacted.

It’s the latest blow to the tax agency, which is facing a separate order from a judge in Washington, D.C., to process a handful of other cases the agency had delayed.

American Thinker, Judge Orders IRS to Stop Targeting Conservative Groups:

A judge in Ohio is ordering the IRS to stop targeting conservative groups applying for tax exempt status and to make an immediate determination on an application by a Tea Party group in Texas.

The decision, made public on Friday, leaves no doubt that despite their claims to the contrary, the IRS is still playing politics in determining the tax exempt status of conservative groups - some of whom have been waiting for years to be approved. ...

The arrogance of this out of control agency is breathtaking. Judge after judge in ruling after ruling has ordered the IRS to halt their illegal targeting of conservative groups, but the IRS has, in effect, thumbed its nose at the courts and continues to play politics with tax exempt applications by conservatives.

The real world impact is that most of these groups who've had their applications slow walked through the system wither and die because donors can't take the tax deduction from monies they contribute to these groups. That, of course, is the heart of the IRS plan, which has worked for 5 years to stifle the free speech of conservatives.

PJ Media, Federal Judge: IRS Still Illegally Targeting Conservatives:

A federal judge in Ohio has had it with the IRS foot-dragging on applications from conservative organizations for exempt status and has ordered the agency to quit stalling.

The order was contained in a sealed filing that became public on Friday. What's clear in the judge's order is that three years after being assured by the IRS that they had stopped singling out conservative organizations for special scrutiny, the targeting continues.

Of course, it isn't just the IRS slow-walking applications through the system that's the problem. The targeting also included outrageous requests for information like donors names and addresses, reading lists, and other private information the agency had no business trying to acquire.

Two federal judges have now ruled against the IRS, rejecting their arguments that they're not targeting conservative organizations.

https://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2016/11/the-irs-scandal-day-1277-second-federal-court-rules-irs-targeted-conservative-groups-orders-irs-to-a.html

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