The leading organisation fighting the redefinition of marriage in the US is set to sue the Internal Revenue 
Service (IRS), accusing it of leaking its tax details to a political rival.
The move comes amid controversy after it emerged that the IRS, which is the US Government’s tax gathering arm, was targeting conservative groups who advocate for more limited government.
The group said that the agency had leaked confidential tax documents to the same-sex marriage advocacy group the Human Rights Campaign (HRC).
“Not only has the IRS retaliated against conservative, small-government and tea party groups as they apply for recognition of tax exemption and lied about it, but it has criminally released our confidential tax return including the identity of dozens of major donors to a political enemy,” said Brian Brown, NOM’s president.
“In addition to being our principal combatant in the war on traditional marriage, the HRC’s president at the time was serving as a Co-Chair of President Obama’s reelection campaign. This is a chilling set of circumstances that should ring alarm bells across the nation.”
In March, 2012, liberal website The Huffington Post revealed that Mitt Romney’s political action committee donated $10,000 to NOM as the group was working to repeal a California law legalising same-sex marriage.
The story was based on a private IRS filing from NOM, which the Human Rights Campaign provided to the publication after receiving it from “a whistleblower.”
For over a year, NOM has argued that the IRS directly leaked confidential tax information, which included a list of private donors.
With the IRS back under scrutiny after it was forced to admit for targeting conservative groups, NOM is taking legal action, and inviting other conservative causes to do so as well.
“Any non-profit who has experienced this IRS retaliation and illegal activity is encouraged to contact ActRight Legal Foundation because you may have a legal remedy,” the group said when it announced the lawsuit.
The group said ActRight, described by NOM as a “conservative public interest law firm,” would also be filing a separate suit against the IRS on behalf of an unidentified nonprofit that was subjected to “inappropriate political activity” when it filed for nonprofit status.
NOM chairman Dr. John C. Eastman said that the “very core of our ordered society has been shaken by this political roughing-up of nonprofits by the IRS”.
“As a constitutional law scholar I can tell you that no non-profit should ever have to experience this kind of retaliation,” Eastman said.
“I am pleased to announce that the excellent attorneys at ActRight Legal Foundation have identified a strong legal strategy that should ultimately hold the IRS accountable and result in lasting change inside of the IRS.”