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Campaign Accountability Watch
Press Release: Campaign Finance Watchdog Spearheads Battle Against Anonymous Donations
Applauds IRS Initiative to Enforce Gift Tax of Fraudulent Non-Profits
Announcement Comes Months After Campaign Accountability Watch Sends Letter on Issue to AG Holder
WASHINGTON, May 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Campaign Accountability Watch (CAW), a watchdog at the forefront in the battle against secret campaign contributions, today applauded the IRS for announcing it will seek payment of a gift tax of 35% for donations made to non-profit organizations involved in electoral campaigns. CAW called it a good "first step" to reigning in these organizations.
CAW sent a letter on October 25, 2010 to Attorney General Holder seeking a special prosecutor for the misuse of non-profit organizations to hide the source of electoral donations.
The letter specifically highlighted the provision in the law that the IRS is now addressing:
…press reports indicate that these same 501c(4) organizations are not advising their donors that their donations are taxable as a 'federal gift tax' at a rate of 35%, thereby both misleading the donors and depriving the federal government of potentially hundreds of millions in tax revenue.
