Rep. Brad Schneider Calls On IRS To Investigate NRA

A recent report could lead to the National Rifle Association losing its tax-exempt status.
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Congressman Brad Schneider (D-Ill.) is calling on the Internal Revenue Service to investigate the National Rifle Association following a damning report last month that revealed the shady business dealings of the gun group.

Schneider, a member of the chief tax-writing Ways and Means Committee, sent a letter to the IRS Thursday asking them to look into whether or not the NRA has violated rules that allow it to be a tax-exempt group.

In an April report released by The Trace in conjunction with The New Yorker, reporter Mike Spies revealed internal documents and state filings from the gun lobbying group that showed hundreds of millions of dollars were siphoned off to top executives.

“In light of this information, I respectfully ask that you review whether the recent allegations against the NRA warrant reconsideration of the organization’s tax-exempt status,” Schneider said in his letter.

Shannon Watts of Moms Demand Action previously said the gun safety group Everytown filed its own complaint to the IRS over the NRA’s tax-exempt status. And New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker (D) said he would also call on the IRS to investigate the NRA’s alleged misdeeds.

The call for action is the latest blow for the NRA, which is struggling to maintain any sense of professionalism after its president, Oliver North, said he would not seek reelection following an attempted overthrow that backfired, and after a HuffPost investigation found an official with the group spoke with a prominent Sandy Hook hoaxer to float his own conspiracy theories about a school shooting.

“The American people deserve to know that tax-exempt organizations are not abusing their preferential tax treatment and are operating according to their intended social welfare purpose, which is to benefit society,” Schneider wrote.

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