Richard Spencer's white nationalist nonprofit, the innocently named National Policy Institute, lost its tax-empt status from the IRS for failing to file tax returns, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday.
“I don’t know what to say. I don’t want to make a comment because I don’t understand this stuff,” Spencer said in a phone call with The Times. “It’s a bit embarrassing, but it’s not good. We’ll figure it out.”
Spencer chalked up the mistake to an IRS error, which allegedly misclassified the National Policy Institute as not being required to file tax forms.
The nonprofit is considered a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. It is incorporated in Alexandria, Virginia, where it raised more than $50,000, mostly from online fundraising, during President Donald Trump's transition. The Times reported that the National Policy Institute had stopped filing its required tax returns with the IRS after 2012.
The IRS revokes tax-exempt status from organizations that do not file for three consecutive years. If an organization's tax-exempt status is revoked, it is required to file a federal income tax return and pay applicable income taxes.
An IRS spokeswoman declined to provide a comment to The Times, saying “federal law prohibits the IRS from commenting on a particular taxpayer or case."
Spencer's group has cultivated a following in the rise of Trump. The "alt-right" blogger was a early supporter of the GOP nominee and championed his immigration policies. Spencer has even stood up for the president in controversies that have rocked the Trump administration.
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