From a
press release from the House Oversight and Government Reform
Committee:
Treasury Department Inspector General, J. Russell George agreed
to comply with a request
submitted by House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
Ranking Member Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Senate Committee on
Homeland Security and Government Affairs Ranking Member Susan
Collins (R-Maine) to conduct a review of the Association of
Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) and of the IRS's
oversight of nonprofit organizations.
"The lack of an appropriate firewall between ACORN's charitable
activities and its political arm has raised significant questions
regarding the appropriateness of their status as a taxable
nonprofit corporation and their management of federal dollars,"
Issa said. "Cutting ties with ACORN is a good first step
for the federal government, but since they have been the
recipients of taxpayer dollars, we have an obligation to
investigate to discover whether or not those dollars were misused
in anyway."
"I am heartened by the agreement of the Treasury Department's
Inspector General to examine the troubling financial questions
that have been raised about ACORN," said Senator Collins. "This
is the first step in the right direction toward much-needed
transparency. As I've noted before, at a time when so many
American families are facing difficult economic situations, it is
completely unacceptable that even one penny of taxpayer money be
misused. We must bring all agencies and groups that use taxpayer
funds into the spotlight of accountability."
Last week, Senator Collins and Rep. Issa made a formal joint
request that seven Offices of Inspectors General, including
Treasury, probe the activities of ACORN, a community advocacy
organization. [...]
