Internal Revenue Service

Want to criticize your government? Better get permission first.

09/10/2013
If you want to criticize a politician, should you have to check with your lawyer first or get the government’s permission? You wouldn’t think so – at least not in America, where we have a First Amendment that’s supposed to protect our right to free speech. Unfortunately, laws enacted under the guise of “campaign finance...

Mother-daughter duo steals more than $530,000 from bankrupt Detroit Public Schools

By Hilary Gowins
08/08/2013
Detroit is already in a severe economic crisis, with more than $18 billion in total debt. But it turns out that the city has lost even more funds – more than $530,000 – due to government worker fraud. According to a press release from U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade: Sandra Campbell, 57, a former Detroit Public Schools contract accountant...

TAGS: Detroit

Illinois taxpayer contributions to state pensions skyrocket

By John Klingner
07/29/2013
Detroit’s recent bankruptcy is sending cities and states a warning: taxpayers shouldn’t be taken for granted. Unfortunately, Illinois’ long-term pension plan does exactly that. Springfield still believes that taxpayers are passive sources of revenue. While state worker contributions to Illinois’ five pension systems have gone up by 75 percent since 1998, taxpayer contributions have gone...

IRS workers want an exemption from ObamaCare

By Paul Kersey
07/25/2013
Another union has lost its enthusiasm for ObamaCare – or at least for one major feature of the federalized health insurance scheme. The National Treasury Employees Union, or NTEU, is encouraging its members to write their congressmen in opposition to HR 1780, a bill that would have federal government workers use health insurance exchanges to buy health insurance....

FOIA reveals 200 IRS employees work for union full time

By Paul Kersey
07/11/2013
Responding to a Freedom of Information Act request from Americans for Limited Government, the Internal Revenue Service revealed that 200 of its “employees” actually work full time for the National Treasury Employees Union, or NTEU. The special union arrangement, known as “official time,” means that rather than working on investigating and collecting taxes, public workers whose...

Illinois’ Comprehensive Annual Financial Report issued 175 days late

By Brian Costin
06/21/2013
If taxpayers don’t file their tax returns by April 15 each year they could face stiff penalties from state and federal government. But what about when government fails to file its financial report to the taxpayers on a timely basis? According to the Government Accounting Standards Board, or GASB, government agencies should release their financial...

The IRS scandal and a partisan union

05/22/2013
by Paul Kersey National Review Reporter Andrew Stiles recently pointed out another group that may have had a hand in using federal tax law to persecute conservative and free market groups – the National Treasury Employees Union, or NTEU. This group represents Internal Revenue Service employees, and has strong partisan preferences. Stiles wrote: The union endorsed Obama...

Dick Durbin’s double standard on IRS targeting conservative organizations

05/19/2013
by Brian Costin The story of the Internal Revenue Service targeting conservative-leaning organizations for special scrutiny in nonprofit status is one of the biggest scandals to hit Washington, D.C., in my lifetime. Even U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin – an Illinois Democrat – has weighed in with outrage about the IRS scandal. From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:...

IRS admits to targeting conservative groups

05/13/2013
by Paul Kersey The Internal Revenue Service has acknowledged that some of its agents targeted conservative and small government groups for unjustified scrutiny when they applied for tax-exempt status prior to the 2012 election: IRS agents singled out dozens of organizations for additional reviews because they included the words “tea party” or “patriot” in their exemption applications,...