Accounting
Tax Analysts pursues legal action against IRS
Seeks Court Help to Force IRS to Disclose Training Materials Its Staff Used for Guidance in Exempt Organizations Determinations
Aug. 14, 2013
Tax Analysts, a nonprofit provider of federal, state, and international tax news and analysis, announced on Wednesday that it has filed a legal action against the IRS, asking a federal court to force the agency to comply with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and provide training materials used for its guidance in exempt organizations determinations.
The legal action comes after Tax Analysts sought and was granted expedited processing of its FOIA request, but the IRS responded with repeated delays.
“Clearly, we do not view our action here lightly. But this is important information, and the press and the public have the right to this information and to get it in a timely fashion,” said Christopher E. Bergin, president and publisher of Tax Analysts.
“We have tried patiently to work with the IRS and have listened carefully to the agency’s concerns, but the IRS has left us no other path,” Bergin added. “Apparently, and unfortunately, the greater the public interest, the more difficult it is to get expedited treatment to a request for information. That is not how this is supposed to work.”
As part of its public education mission, Tax Analysts seeks transparency in tax laws and more dialogue between tax authorities and taxpayers. Through these and other efforts, Tax Analysts seeks to ensure that tax laws are applied fairly and equally to taxpayers across the country.