IRS to audit Nature Conservancy

[Newsjock]

From Saturday's Washington Post; no link yet

By Joe Stephens and David B. Ottaway=
(c) 2004, The Washington Post=

WASHINGTON — A team of IRS examiners will move into the global headquarters of the Nature Conservancy in Arlington, Va., to begin auditing the charity, the world's largest environmental organization.

A letter sent to the Conservancy by the Internal Revenue Service last month indicates that the audit will be of uncommon scope for a charity, tax specialists said. The memorandum proposes a preliminary meeting between four IRS examiners and the Conservancy's chief financial officer to discuss logistics, communications, telephone access, equipment and accommodations. The IRS will examine 2002 tax returns, the letter said.

``It is unusual,'' said former IRS commissioner Donald C. Alexander, now a private tax lawyer. ``This is an extraordinary case. ... It is an indication of a pretty strong audit.''

... The Senate Finance Committee began looking into the charity last year. Investigators have spent months sifting through internal Conservancy documents, debriefing whistle-blowers and weighing legislative reforms.

more to come

[bobbieinok]

1. why???

I heard some years ago that some people don't like the large land donations to this group