March 18, 2004 | Read Time: 1 minute
The chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, Rep. Bill Thomas, wants to hold hearings on the activities of nonprofit organizations to determine if certain groups deserve to keep their tax-exempt status.
Mr. Thomas, Republican of California, told a recent gathering of the Federation of American Hospitals that he plans to examine why some hospitals, credit unions, and universities remain tax-exempt, while others must pay taxes.
“There’s been a lot of activity over the last decade in the tax-preferred area that requires a broader examination of just what it is the taxpayers are getting for their money,” Representative Thomas said. “Some of it’s gotten at least murky or lost” as nonprofit groups have attempted “to build and grow and provide services to the point that, if I put one down on paper and said profit or not-profit, you couldn’t tell the difference.”
The Ways and Means Committee has just started to gather information for its examination of charities, according to a committee aide. As yet, the aide said, no hearings have been scheduled on the matter.
