Al Sharpton’s “Love Offerings”: IRS Demands Roughly $500,000 in Fines for Illegal Contributions

While he appears to have avoided criminal charges despite some highly suspicious taped demands for money, Al Sharpton is not out of the woods yet with the federal government. The government estimates that his campaign owes half a million dollars for for illegal donations and other financial improprieties. This includes matching funds that he received for his presidential run, which the government wants back after discovering that he violated federal laws.

The auditors have now determined that Sharpton owes $486,803 to the U.S. Treasury. His organization insists that some of this money is merely “love offerings” that he collected after speaking to churches.

He put some costs on his own American Express (which were reimbursed), some costs were were paid by the National Action Network, and some by a different company called Rev-Als Production Inc.

The federal audit states: “Virtually no effort appears to have been made by Sharpton 2004, the candidate, NAN, or Rev-Als. Production Inc. to keep any sort of detailed records demonstrating what payments paid for which travel. Auditors further found that there was a “nearly complete failure to produce any information on this subject in the course of the audit.”

Sharpton has previously faced charges of unpaid federal taxes.

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