IRS Tax-Exempt Status Crackdown Names 36 Brandon Groups

The Brandon Area Senior Citizens Club, Brandon League of Fine Arts Inc. and Stagedoor Performing Arts Inc. are among 36 Brandon organizations stripped of their non-profit status by the Internal Revenue Service. 

According to the IRS, a total of 275,000 groups nationwide “have had their federal tax-exempt status automatically revoked for failing to file an annual information return or notice with the IRS for three consecutive years.”

In Florida, 13,902 groups lost their tax-exempt status.

 “The IRS believes the vast majority of these organizations are defunct, but it also announced special steps to help any existing organizations to apply for reinstatement of their tax-exempt status,” said the IRS in a statement announcing the action.

Nationwide, 275,000 groups have lost their tax-exempt status. Some of those groups – like the Veterans of World War I of the USA in Brandon – may be defunct the IRS said. Other groups who have reorganized or changed their names over the years may also find themselves on the list under their previous identities.

Brandon tax attorney Richard Wheeler said the revocation should come as no surprise.

“The IRS requirement to file annual returns has been out there and the IRS has been sending out notices to groups.”

So what does the revocation mean to groups that have now lost their tax-exempt status?

 “If they are 501(c)(3), it means donations are no longer tax deductible,” said Wheeler, a member of the Berg and Wheeler PA on East Robertson Street. “Even if they are not a 501(c)(3), income they receive is no longer tax exempt, they are required to pay income taxes on that money.”

A practicing tax attorney since 1981, Wheeler has helped several local organizations apply for tax-exempt status but it is not a simple process, he said.

If an active organization finds itself on the list they “ought to try to get reinstated. But if they have to start from scratch again it is a lot of work. The applications themselves are a lot of work.”

The process is not so convoluted for homeowners groups or social clubs, he said.

“During the past several years, the IRS has gone the extra mile to help make tax-exempt groups aware of their legal filing requirement and allow them additional time to file,” IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said in a statement. “Still, we realize there may be some legitimate organizations, especially very small ones, that were unaware of their new filing requirement. We are taking additional steps for these groups to maintain their tax-exempt status without jeopardizing their operations or harming their donors.”

This listing should have little, if any, impact on donors who previously made deductible contributions to the groups now stripped of their non-profit status because donations made prior to the publication of an organization’s name on the list remain tax-deductible, according to the IRS.

“Going forward, however, organizations that are on the auto-revocation list that do not receive reinstatement are no longer eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions, and any income they receive may be taxable,” said an IRS statement.

Existing organizations that seek to have their tax-exempt status reinstated must complete an application and pay a user fee regardless of whether they were originally required to file such an application. More information on the reinstatement process, including retroactive reinstatement, can be found on IRS.gov.

IRS spreadsheets provide a national and state by state list of the organizations who lost their tax-exempt status.

The groups with Brandon addresses who lost their tax-exempt status were:

• Affiliated Horsemens Organization, 116 Hickory Creek Drive, Brandon
• Alpha Xi Delta Fraternity Tampa, 1602 Cottagewood Drive Brandon
• Arts and Inspiration Inc, 629 Timber Pond Drive Brandon  
• Aziel God Strengthens Inc., 506 Hilldale Road Brandon
• Benevolent Society of Truck Drivers, 406 Clemons Road Brandon
• Brandon Area Senior Citizens Club, 500 Sadie St. Brandon
• Brandon Crosstown Action Committee, 306 Cambridge Place Brandon
• Brandon Hills Swim Club Inc., 712 W. Sylvan Drive Brandon
• Brandon League of Fine Arts Inc., PO box 451 Brandon
• Business Professional Roundtable, 1817 Lake Crest Ave., Brandon
• Canadian Baptist Mission Inc., PO Box 270 Brandon
• Cat Call Inc., PO Box 6356 Brandon
• Children Having Opportunities, 2420 W. Brandon Blvd., Brandon
• Christian Witness Outreach Ministry, PO Box 1467 Brandon
• CPR Ministries, 3920 S. Kings Ave., Brandon
• Demolay International, Morgan Street, Brandon
• Evangelist Billy Renstrom Inc., PO Box 1349 Brandon
• Fish N Wheels Inc., 1113 English Bluffs Court Brandon
• For the Kids Inc., PO Box 3330 Brandon
• Foundation of Faith Christian, 627 Rapid Falls Drive Brandon
• Greater Brandon Business Group Inc., 235 W. Brandon blvd. Brandon
• Impact for Christ Crusade Inc., PO Box 467 Brandon
• International Brotherhood, 804 Canoe Court Brandon
• International Longshoremen 1117, Bristolwood Street Brandon
• International Relief and Training, PO Box 1364 Brandon
• Lady Knights Fast Pitch Softball, 721 Dewolf Road Brandon
• Lions International Lions Club, 3206 Deer Court Brandon
• Mercy in Action Inc., 114 N. Montclair Ave. Brandon
• Metropolitan CB Radio Club, PO Box 632 Brandon
• Mission with Passion for Jesus Inc., PO Box 1104 Brandon
• Mosher Ministries, 108 Clocktower Drive, Brandon
• Our Place of Brandon Inc., PO Box 764 Brandon
• Russell & Elisabeth Lentz, 3647 Woodhill Drive Brandon
• Stagedoor Performing Arts Inc., PO Box 89363 Brandon
• This Old Cabin Inc., 1009 Mandalay Drive Brandon
• Veterans of World War I of the USA, 210 Sandra Ave. Brandon