No tax charges filed in Southern Poverty Law Center probe, after IRS lawyers determined informant program legally structured, sources say Federal agents investigated the Southern Poverty Law Center’s paid informant program for potential tax crimes, but the probe did not result in charges. IRS lawyers determined the program was legally structured, citing a Treasury Department rule that exempts nonprofits from filing tax returns for payments made to informants providing information about criminal activity. The investigation, which began during the Trump administration, was an expansion of an earlier FBI probe into potential embezzlement by a former CFO.

• Federal agents investigated the Southern Poverty Law Center’s (SPLC) paid informant program for possible tax crimes.
• IRS lawyers determined the program was legally structured and advised against seeking tax charges.
• A Treasury Department rule exempts 501(c)(3) nonprofits from filing tax returns for payments to informants on criminal activity.
• The tax investigation was an expansion of an FBI probe into potential embezzlement by a former SPLC chief financial officer.
• The Justice Department later obtained a wire and bank fraud indictment against the SPLC, but it did not include tax-related charges.
• The SPLC denies wrongdoing and has pleaded not guilty to the fraud charges.