On Jan. 27, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People declined to respond to a summons from the Internal Revenue Service in an audit based on charges of illegal partisan activity. The NAACP said the IRS did not follow proper procedures and the agency’s actions are politically motivated. The IRS denied its motives are political and referred the allegation to the Treasury Department’s Inspector General for Tax Administration. The audit is unusual because it is based on NAACP Chairman Julian Bond’s July 2004 convention speech that criticized Bush administration policies. The IRS issued the summons Jan. 14, seeking information normally reported in the annual nonprofit IRS return, Form 990. The NAACP response said the summons was not issued for a legal reason because it is not yet due, noting, “It appears that political pressure, rather than any sound legal authority, motivated the Service to ignore the statutorily-mandated procedures for initiating an examination.” The letter noted the IRS can only take action prior to filing Form 990 if it meets the requirements of Section 6852 of the Internal Revenue Code, which gives the IRS authority to act on flagrant violations of the prohibition on electioneering by 501(c)(3) organizations. The NAACP letter said, “While criticism of an administration’s policies might constitute intervention under some set of circumstances, it hardly rises to the level of a ‘gross violation’ or a ‘flagrant’ expenditure. Indeed, criticism or praise of government policy is First Amendment speech of a high order in a democratic society.” On Nov. 12, 2004, IRS Commissioner Mark Everson responded to a letter from Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), who asked for more information on the motivation for the audit and expressed concern about Nixon-era type intimidation tactics. Everson’s letter said the IRS had not received any request to audit any group from the executive branch, but that two members of Congress requested “we look at one or more organizations in this area.” Everson said those requests were treated the same as any other third party referral. The NAACP letter, noting the requests from members of Congress, said, “The IRS has not explained its motivation for initiating an exam program at the behest of political figures who may themselves have been active participants in the campaign .... However, we must conclude that the intention was to chill appropriate voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts, while conducted by the NAACP or by other organizations that are targeted by similar examinations in the program.” Everson’s letter to Baucus denied political motivation, saying that “career employees determine whether specific information we review warrants further action.” He described the IRS program to enforce the ban on partisan activity by 501(c)(3) organizations in 2004 as consisting of education and enforcement. The enforcement effort was overseen by a committee of career employees that was created in the summer. They reviewed more than 100 cases and more than 60 were selected for examination, including about 20 religious organizations. Details, including the identity of the groups being audited, have not been made public because tax law protects the privacy of the groups. Everson did say the groups represent diverse viewpoints. Everson noted changes in the law since the Nixon era. Any White House request for IRS action must be signed by the president and reported to Congress’s Joint Committee on Taxation (Internal Revenue Code Section 6103(g)). Executive branch employees and cabinet heads are prohibited from making such inquiries by Section 1105 of the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998.