Tax-Exempt Organizations: Additional Information on Activities and IRS Oversight
Highlights
GAO discussed the activities of tax-exempt organizations and the revenue resulting from these activities. GAO noted that: (1) the tax-exempt community is dominated by several categories of organizations and characterized by the concentration of resources among larger organizations; (2) many larger tax-exempt organizations rely on income-producing activities to fund their operations; (3) in 1993, about 3 percent of all tax-exempt organizations paid $173.6 million in unrelated business income tax to address competition between tax-exempt organizations and taxable businesses; (4) while tax-exempt organizations receive a substantial portion of revenue from other than contributions and membership dues, government grants do not comprise a major portion of their income; (5) the extent to which tax-exempt organizations may engage in lobbying depends upon the type of organization; and (6) the Internal Revenue Service's oversight of tax-exempt organizations mainly involves recognizing organizations for tax-exempt status, and ensuring that these organizations are operating for their approved purposes and paying the proper amount of excise taxes.