The National Organization for Marriage has received a $50,000 settlement from the IRS after the government agency admitted it was at fault for publishing confidential information about the organization’s donors gleaned from its tax returns. A federal court forced the IRS to pay the fee to the group championing heterosexual marriage.
The case began when the pro-marriage group sued the IRS in 2013 because a 2008 form was leaked, and then the Human Rights Campaign, which advocates gay rights, published the information in 2012.
John Eastman, chairman of the national Orgnaization for Marriage, stated Tuesday that he is grateful that the IRS was forced to answer for its actions after the “long and arduous” process. He added, “Thanks to a lot of hard work, we’ve forced the IRS to admit that they in fact were the ones to break the law and wrongfully released this confidential information.”
IRS spokesman Bruce Friedland refused to comment, saying he was unable to because of privacy law. The DOJ represented the IRS in the case. House Ways and Means Chairman David Camp (R-MI) said after the announcement of the settlement that the DOJ should be chastised for its reticence in pursuing the case. He continued, arguing that the DOJ couldn’t be trusted to pursue any investigation into the entire IRS scandal in which conservative groups were targeted. Camp noted, “While the administration prefers to sweep this under the rug, it is time that the American people have a special prosecutor into this matter so the full truth can come out.”
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