IRS probe sought into foundation's support for Perry

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Source: Houston Chronicle

AUSTIN — A project to mobilize faith-based voters to support a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage may have illegally served Gov. Rick Perry's re-election campaign, according to a complaint filed Thursday with the Internal Revenue Service.

The Texas Freedom Network, a religious watchdog group, asked the IRS to investigate a Houston-based foundation that allegedly violated its tax-exempt status by mobilizing Christian voters to support Perry.

The group says that several of Perry's top contributors funneled money through the Niemoller Foundation to the Texas Restoration Project, a group of 2,000 socially conservative pastors.

The Restoration Project held six "policy briefings" in 2005 centered on voter turnout for a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. Perry spoke at those meetings.

Read more: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/5448459.html