by
Ethan Barton
A global warming crusader used a tax-exempt nonprofit to stuff his
families’ pockets at the expense of taxpayers, according to a complaint
filed with the Internal Revenue Service by two watchdog groups Tuesday.
The Competitive Enterprise Institute and Cause of Action filed a
complaint asking the IRS to revoke the exempt status of the Institute of
Global Environment and Society Inc. — a global warming advocate that
has received over $60 million in federal grants.
The nonprofit’s founder and president is George Mason University
Professor Jagadish Shukla, who was also the lead signatory of a Sept. 1
letter urging President Obama to
investigate fossil fuel companies for deceiving “the American people about the risks of climate change, as a means to forestall America’s response to climate change.”
The letter said the government should use the Racketeering Influenced
and Corrupt Organizations Act that is used to prosecute members of
organized crime syndicates.
“It’s incredibly ironic that, while Dr. Shukla accuses global warming
skeptics of deceiving the public, his own environmental organization
has been pulling a fast one at taxpayer expense,” said CEI General
Counsel Sam Kazman. “His attempt to use RICO to silence public debate is
groundless, and so is his organization’s tax-exempt status.”
Shukla was “double dipping” between his nonprofit and George Mason, according to the complaint.
“Evidence gleaned from public and IRS records tends to show that Dr.
Shukla was compensated by George Mason University for time spent on IGES
projects and vice-versa,” the complaint said. “It is not clear what
work, if any, Dr. Shukla performs on behalf of IGES that is separate
from his full-time work as a professor and director of the Climate
Dynamics Program at George Mason University.”
For example, Shukla received $333,000 from IGES in 2014 for working
28 hours per week and was paid $314,000 by George Mason that same
year. He earned $647,000 total in2014 between George Mason and IGES.
Meanwhile, IGES’ business manager and Shukla’s wife — Anastasia
Shukla — received $166,000 in 2014, while his daughter, Sonia, is
employed as their assistant at an undisclosed salary.
...Also, IGES received more than $3.8 million in government grants, which
accounted for all of its contributions and all but nearly $14,000 of its
total revenue, according to the complaint. That means Shukla and his
family were actually paid mostly with tax dollars.
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