WSJ: IRS Mulled Gift Tax on Tax-Exempt Political Groups

The IRS contemplated placing a gift tax on large contributions to tax-exempt political organizations in 2011, recently surfaced emails have revealed, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The emails came to light during the GOP probe into the IRS crackdown on conservative groups, fueling Republican concerns that the agency tried to quash politically active tax-exempt organizations.

Republican Rep. Darrell Issa of California, the outgoing chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said the emails "demonstrate that the IRS sought to use the gift tax as one part of a larger effort" to curtail political speech.

The emails were included in a year-end report from Issa’s committee about the IRS targeting scandal that was expected to be released Tuesday, the Journal reported.

The top gift tax rate was 35 percent in 2011 and is now 40 percent, the Journal reported, while noting that such a gift tax would have "disproportionately hurt conservative activists."

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