The Internal Revenue Service has revoked the tax-exempt status of nearly 34-thousand California based religious and charitable groups. The list also includes social welfare organizations.
I-R-S officials say the groups failed to file annual reports over the past three-years.
Jesse Weller with the Internal Revenue Service in Oakland explained, “most of the organizations, we believe are defunct and no longer in existence because the IRS has made a substantial effort over the last three to four years trying to notify these organizations of the new filing requirements.”
Weller says still-functioning organizations that didn’t get the message can reapply for reinstatement of their tax-exempt status.
A 2006 law requires most tax-exempt organizations to file an annual information return with the I-R-S.
It automatically revokes the status for groups that fail to file the required papers for three consecutive years.
