H.R.

5053: Preventing IRS Abuse

and Protecting Free Speech Act

Republicans in Congress are trying to decrease the already scant amount of

disclosure for politically-active nonprofits Huffington Post
Claiming a social welfare tax exemption has become a tool for powerful
political operatives like Karl Rove, the Republican campaign guru. New York
Times
Eliminating the existing requirement for disclosure to the IRS of donations to
501(c)(4) social welfare groups would open the door wide for secret,
unaccountable money from foreign governments, foreign corporations and
foreign individuals to be illegally laundered into federal elections through
501(c)(4) groups.- the Sunlight Foundation

The reality of H.R. 5053

H.R. 5053 removes the unnecessary Form 990 Schedule B for donors that are not officers,
or one of the five highest paid employees of a 501(c) organization
What are Form 990 and Schedule B?
Form 990 is a document submitted to the IRS annually by 501(c) organizations to verify
their tax exempt status
Schedule B is a portion of IRS form 990 which lists the type and value of contributions and
the name and address of donors who give over $5,000 per year to a 501(c) organization
What is Schedule B used for?
No one knows. Schedule B is never supposed to be made public and it does not assist in
validating a 501(c) organizations tax-exempt status
Why should we be concerned?
IRS employees have accidentally leaked the Schedule B form and the personally
identifiable information of conservative donors
Notably in 2013 the National Organization for Marriage had its Schedule B form released
by an unnamed IRS employee and published by Huffington Post
What the IRS is saying:
Tammy Ripperda, Director of Exempt Organizations at the IRS, publicly stated that the IRS
was considering removing Schedule B themselves

Protect your non-profit from IRS targeting. Support

Congressman Peter Roskams H.R. 5053: Preventing IRS
Abuse and Protecting Free Speech Act

Please contact Jeff.Billman@mail.house.gov, or 202-225-4561

H.R. 5053: Preventing IRS Abuse and Protecting

Disclosing
donorSpeech
informationAct
violates the First Amendment right to
Free

freedom of speech for organizations and the people who contribute to

them. Congress should prohibit the continued collection by the IRS of
this sensitive information. Your legislation prohibits the IRS from
collecting the identity of donors who contribute to tax-exempt
organizations, protecting taxpayer identity and stopping the IRS from
similar targeting in the future.
As long as the IRS collects donor lists via the Schedule B, there will
continue to be a serious risk of unauthorized use by the IRS, subjecting
individuals to ideologically motivated scrutiny in retaliation for their
contributions. There will also be additional breaches of confidentiality
Put simply, the Schedule B requirement is an increasingly grave threat
to the First Amendment.
This bill is an important first step toward reaffirming Americans right
to free speech while protecting them from threats and intimidation
because of their personal beliefs. The scandal at the IRS showed how
the abuse of power can erode one of our most fundamental freedoms.
One week after a federal court ruled correctly to preserve this right to
privacy, Congress should ensure Americans dont have to live in fear
that their political speech could make them a target for the federal
government.
H.R. 5053 would eliminate both the current Schedule B requirements
and help pre-empt further violations of taxpayers privacy and freedom
of speech by the IRS. This is a critical step to protect taxpayers, rein in
the IRS, and help preserve the robust charitable sector that serves
such an essential role in our society.
Repealing the Schedule B (list of contributors) requirement from the
990 filing is a major blow for freedom and goes a long way to
protecting real Americans against the outrageous abuses of this rogue
agency.
This week, the House Ways and Means Committee will take another
step addressing IRS overreach when it considers several pieces of
legislation including the Preventing IRS Abuse and Protecting Free
Speech Act... Rep. Roskams legislation prevents the IRS from targeting
non-profits by prohibiting the agency from collecting the identity of
donors who contribute to these organizations.
This legislation, repealing what is known as the Schedule B Form for 501(c)
organizations, will help to make tax compliance easier, as well as further curb the ability
of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to hinder free speech and civic participation among
the public. This bill is just another step in the ongoing efforts by Congress to rein in the
power of the IRS, and ensure that the agency is working for the taxpayer and not against
them.
The Preventing IRS Abuse and Protecting Free Speech Act provides a
much needed fix to the system and protects the First Amendment.
Prohibiting the IRS from collecting the identity of voters who contribute
to non-profits will curtail the agency from any new attempts to target

non-profit organizations. should never have the latitude to target groups based on certain
Regardless of the political beliefs.
affiliation of future
Administrations, the IRS