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IRS screening of conservative groups 'not partisan' IRS screening of conservative groups 'not partisan'
(35 minutes later)
The head of the US tax authority and a top treasury investigator have said the extra scrutiny given to conservative political groups was not motivated by partisanship. The head of the US tax authority and a top treasury investigator have denied the extra tax scrutiny given to conservative political groups was motivated by partisanship or politics.
In a congressional hearing, acting Internal Revenue Service commissioner Steven Miller apologised, saying tax agency staff made "foolish mistakes".In a congressional hearing, acting Internal Revenue Service commissioner Steven Miller apologised, saying tax agency staff made "foolish mistakes".
Mr Miller has resigned over the matter, which has roiled the White House. A senior Republican said the practice amounted to "political intimidation".
President Barack Obama, a Democrat, has denounced the practice as unacceptable. The revelations have cast a shadow over President Barack Obama's second term.
He has named Daniel Werfel as acting IRS commissioner, effective from 22 May. 'Culture of cover-ups'
'Did not mislead' Mr Miller and another top staff member in the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have resigned over the matter.
Congressmen urged the witnesses to explain why conservative political groups applying for tax-exempt status were asked intrusive questions and had their applications delayed. Mr Obama has denounced the practice as unacceptable and Attorney General Eric Holder has said the FBI has launched a criminal inquiry into the matter.
Mr Obama's fellow Democrats, meanwhile, urged the committee not to let the inquiry devolve into a political show. Friday's hearing in the House ways and means committee was the first in a series of congressional hearings on the affair.
Some lawmakers expressed outraged that in previous hearings, senior figures at the IRS had denied any targeting of conservative groups. The IRS has acknowledged that beginning in 2010, staff in a Cincinnati, Ohio branch office delayed the filings for tax-exempt status of conservative groups with words such as "tea party" or "patriot" in their applications or that otherwise indicated their conservative orientation.
"I did not mislead Congress, nor the American people," Mr Miller told lawmakers. "I answered the questions as they were asked." The revelations have outraged Republicans and Democrats alike, while analysts say Republicans are eager to seize on the matter to discredit the Obama administration.
Also testifying on Friday was J Russell George, the treasury department inspector general for tax administration, who led the internal inquiry that sparked much of the uproar. "This appears to be just the latest example of a culture of cover-ups - and political intimidation - in this administration," House ways and means committee Chairman Dave Camp said at the opening of Friday's hearing.
He told the committee that he did not believe the actions by IRS staff were motivated by politics, and said his inquiry had found no suggestion anyone outside the tax agency influenced the actions. "It seems like the truth is hidden from the American people just long enough to make it through an election."
Friday's hearing in the House ways and means committee is the first in a series of Congressional hearings on the matter. Mr Miller testified on Friday that while the practice of maintaining a list of keywords that flagged conservative groups for extra review was "intolerable", it was a mistake and had merely been put together by civil servants trying to work more efficiently.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has acknowledged that staff members at a branch office in Cincinnati, Ohio, targeted groups filing for tax-exempt status for extra scrutiny if their names included words like "patriot" or "Tea Party" that marked them as conservative. Delays
In some instances, the groups were asked to provide lists of members, volunteers and donors, and their applications for tax-exempt status were delayed. J Russell George, the treasury department inspector general for tax administration, told the committee that he did not believe the actions by IRS staff were motivated by politics, and said his inquiry had found no suggestion anyone outside the tax agency influenced the practice.
The practice began in 2010 after the US Supreme Court loosened restrictions on political groups' ability to raise and spend money on political campaigns. The list of watch words was assembled by a "determinations unit" based in Cincinnati, and there seemed to be little or no supervisory review of the list, he told the committee.
Republicans, meanwhile, have expressed outrage. The IRS is an independent agency within the treasury department, and although an internal treasury department inquiry found no evidence the staff members had been pushed by anyone outside the agency, Republicans say they are sceptical. The IRS is an independent agency within the treasury department.
The practice lasted for about 18 months until June 2011, when officials in Washington became aware of it, Mr George said.
Mr George's investigation, revealed this week, found that 298 groups had been subjected to additional auditing. In those cases the IRS may have asked for lists of donors, the groups' position on a range of issues, and whether the group's senior members intended to run for public office.
Many of the applicants faced considerable delays, he added.
But some lawmakers expressed outraged that in previous hearings, senior figures at the IRS had denied any targeting of conservative groups.
"That isn't being misled. That's lying," said Mr Camp.
Mr Miller said: "I did not mislead Congress, nor the American people. I answered the questions as they were asked."
In addition to Mr Miller, Joseph Grant, commissioner of the IRS's tax-exempt and government-entities division, said on Thursday that he was stepping down within a month.In addition to Mr Miller, Joseph Grant, commissioner of the IRS's tax-exempt and government-entities division, said on Thursday that he was stepping down within a month.
This week, Attorney General Eric Holder said the FBI had launched a criminal inquiry into the matter.