FIRST ON FOX: SPLC's tax-exempt status under threat after fiery Capitol Hill hearing

FIRST ON FOX: A left-wing nonprofit accused by the Department of Justice of secretly funding the extremism it claims to combat is facing a new threat from Capitol Hill.

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, introduced legislation Wednesday that would revoke the Southern Poverty Law Center's (SPLC) tax-exempt status, ramping up pressure on the civil rights nonprofit organization amid a federal probe into alleged financial crimes. 

The measure’s introduction comes after Roy vowed Tuesday to target the law center’s tax-exempt status after grilling Bryan Fair, the SPLC's interim chief executive, about its record of targeting mainstream conservative organizations during a contentious oversight hearing.

"The SPLC has built a business in smearing Christian conservatives and profiting from labeling its ideological opponents as ‘extremists’ and ‘hate groups,’" Roy said in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital. "Tax-exempt status should be reserved for charitable organizations serving the public good — not groups engaged in partisan political warfare."

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"The Stop SPLC Act would simply revoke the SPLC’s tax-exempt status and end the special tax benefits it has enjoyed for far too long," he added.

A spokesperson for the nonprofit did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

The legislation comes as the SPLC is accused of routing $4.1 million in tax-exempt donor funds to various extremist organizations — including the Ku Klux Klan and the United Klans of America — between 2010 and 2023, using fictitious accounts and committing bank fraud to conceal the payments.

The group has insisted its informant program "saved lives," but federal prosecutors allege hate groups that received the donor money used a portion of it for recruitment purposes and to purchase materials, such as wood for cross burnings and KKK paraphernalia.

Fair has denied that the SPLC did anything wrong and largely declined to discuss the allegations Tuesday.

The law center has 501(c)(3) status as a nonprofit organization, which means financial contributions to the group are tax-deductible.

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Roy’s bill could threaten the group’s flush finances, as donations surged during the period it operated the now-defunct informant program. 

"Advancing hatred has become quite profitable for the SPLC, as in 2024, the organization had over $829 million in assets and an endowment of approximately $730.8 million and $120.9 million in revenue," Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wy., said Tuesday. "The bulk of this money comes from the contributions of the SPLC donors."

Turning Point USA, the Family Research Council and Moms for Liberty are among the conservative organizations listed on the law center’s annual "hate map" database alongside neo-Nazi and White supremacist groups.

GOP lawmakers pressed Fair Tuesday about those designations and the notable omission of leftist groups.

"How many leftist anti-Jewish groups do you have listed on your website," Roy asked Fair. "How many extremist Islamic groups do you have?"

Fair did not name an organization that fit either criteria, prompting Roy to suggest that the left-wing nonprofit intentionally targets conservative Christian groups.

"So you think there's a bunch of Islamic groups that are pro-LGBTQ?" the Texas lawmaker then asked Fair, triggering laughs from the hearing room. "Is that the position of the SPLC? I just want to make sure the record is reflecting that."

"We target no group or label … because of its religion," Fair insisted.

Fair also defended the law center’s decision to designate Turning Point, a conservative youth activism powerhouse founded by the late Charlie Kirk, as an extremist organization.

"It is our position that TPUSA expresses views and vilifies other people based on immutable characteristics, exposing them to our listing," Fair told Roy. 

Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk slammed Fair’s comments during a post on social media Tuesday.

"Turning Point USA has, from the beginning, stood for open conversations and respectful debate regardless of creed or color," Kirk, the wife of the late Charlie Kirk, said. "All along, the real hate group is the SPLC, which recklessly sows hate every day with its lies."

Roy has also introduced legislation to revoke the tax-exempt status of the national Muslim advocacy group, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), but the bill has since stalled in committee. Republicans have sharply criticized the nonprofit over alleged ties to terrorism.