TALLAHASSEE - The state doesn't want to know who writes big checks to obscure committees that help fuel legislators' political ambitions.
But the IRS does.
The agency requires every political group seeking tax-exempt status to disclose names and occupations of every contributor. Several haven't done that. They could face a fine totaling 35 percent of all money collected and spent.
"If you don't disclose, you're going to pay taxes on them," said Nancy Watkins, a Tampa accountant. She is treasurer of Rep. Dennis Ross' committee and frequently deals with the IRS on filing issues.
"That's kind of clear," agreed Mark Herron, a Tallahassee lawyer and election law expert who has set up committees that allow lawmakers to raise unlimited amounts of money with scant state oversight.
Herron said there has been confusion about how tax laws apply to political committees. But he said every committee that collects more than $25,000 a year is required to list every last donation to the IRS, including the addresses and occupations of contributors.
To be exempt from federal disclosure as a "qualified state or local political organization," a committee must already have to file donor information with the state. Experts say Florida is the only state that does not require disclosure of that kind.
Among a dozen Florida committees that have raised more than $25,000 in a year, the IRS does not list donor information on four.
The committees are controlled by Sen. Ken Pruitt, R-Port St. Lucie; Rep. Gaston Cantens, R-Miami; Rep. Marco Rubio, R-Coral Gables; and Rep. Dwight Stansel, D-Wellborn and Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Dania Beach, who are both officers of the same committee.
Pruitt, whose committee has raised $613,000, more than any other fund, said he thinks he's in compliance with the tax laws but isn't positive. "We feel optimistic," he said. "But if we missed something somewhere, then we're going to go back and rectify it."
Rubio said he used Pruitt's fund as a model for his own. Cantens, who raised $263,000, said he relied on his treasurer, an accountant.
"There's never been any attempt to not comply with the IRS," Cantens said. "That's the last thing anybody would want to do."
The Business for Better Government fund, listing Ryan and Stansel as officers, sent copies of its state reports to the IRS. The group lists $133,000 in donations simply as "bedrock, keystone, cornerstone, and foundation members." Ryan said the committee relied on a CPA's advice.
Watkins said it is legally impossible for a political committee to conceal sources of contributions from the IRS.
"There is no such thing as a hidden contribution in this country any more," Watkins said.
