Tea party groups settle lawsuits over IRS mistreatment
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Trump administration has settled lawsuits with dozens of tea party groups who said they received extra, often burdensome scrutiny when applying for tax-exempt status.
Court documents filed Wednesday show the Internal Revenue Service apologized and agreed not to single out applications based on an organization’s political views. A judge must still approve the agreements.
The IRS in 2013 admitted targeting hundreds of groups with words like “Tea Party” or “Patriot” in their names when they applied for tax-exempt status. Many had their applications delayed for months and years. The organizations sued, alleging constitutional rights violations.
The issue became a major embarrassment for the Obama administration, which declined to prosecute anyone for the mistreatment.
The Trump Justice Department has also said it lacks the evidence to reopen the criminal investigation.