Two powerful House committees are demanding action over a claim that reaches far beyond campus activism and cultural associations: the communist party of china may be using tax-exempt nonprofits inside the United States to influence elections and politics. The request lands with unusual force because it ties together diaspora groups, a New York enforcement case, and a broader congressional argument that the nonprofit sector has been left open to foreign influence.
What are lawmakers saying Treasury and the IRS missed?
Verified fact: House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Chairman John Moolenaar and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Internal Revenue Service chief executive Frank Bisignano. They said they have “grave concerns” that “hometown” entities linked to the communist party of china are exploiting the U. S. nonprofit system.
Verified fact: The lawmakers described these hometown organizations as groups formed by immigrants from the same towns or provinces in China to welcome new arrivals, organize parades, and help members maintain social and cultural ties. Their warning is not that such groups are inherently political; it is that some may be used under nonprofit cover for political activity.
Analysis: That distinction is central. The public-facing identity of these groups is social and cultural, but the congressional letter argues that this can conceal influence work. The question is not whether diaspora organizations exist — it is whether tax-exempt status has created a protective shell around activity lawmakers believe crosses into election interference.
Why does the New York case matter here?
Verified fact: The lawmakers linked their demand to the FBI investigation and raid of the American Changle Association in New York City, where authorities alleged it housed an illegal “secret police station” run by China’s Ministry of Public Security. Two people were arrested for acting as unregistered foreign agents, and one man, Chen Jinping of New York, pled guilty to conspiring to act as an illegal agent of the government of the People’s Republic of China.
Verified fact: The other case remains in court. The lawmakers also cited a New York Times investigation from last year that said at least 53 organizations endorsed or raised money for political candidates, likely in violation of the rules, and that at least 19 were in clear violation of federal restrictions.
Analysis: This is where the issue moves from allegation to pattern. The New York examples give lawmakers a concrete case study for their broader claim that foreign influence can hide in plain sight inside the nonprofit sector. In their view, one enforcement case is not an isolated breakdown; it is evidence of a system that may not be checking what its tax exemptions are shielding.
Who is implicated in the broader influence network?
Verified fact: The committees also targeted Neville Roy Singham, a U. S. -born tech mogul living in Shanghai, whom congressional investigators have linked to American tax-exempt organizations including The People’s Forum, BreakThrough News, and Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research. The letter says the network spans street-level Marxist cultural agitation, pro-Beijing campus activism, and United Front diaspora infrastructure.
Verified fact: The lawmakers wrote that the communist party of china uses United Front organizations, proxies, and intermediaries — many holding tax-exempt status under Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code — to engage in political activity that manipulates democratic institutions and advances CCP interests. They also said Singham’s wife is a co-founder of CodePink.
Analysis: The stake here is not simply whether a few nonprofits violated campaign rules. It is whether a web of organizations can operate inside the legal protections of tax exemption while serving a political strategy that Congress says is coordinated and long-running. The letter frames this as a direct threat to American democratic institutions, not a narrow compliance issue.
What response are lawmakers demanding now?
Verified fact: Moolenaar and Smith addressed their joint letter to Treasury and the IRS and demanded a formal briefing no later than April 22 on what steps the agencies are taking. They want enforcement action against organizations they say are tied to the communist party of china and operating inside the tax-exempt sector.
Verified fact: The lawmakers also ground their request in congressional investigations and Department of Justice prosecutions. They cite a prior congressional memo that described United Front work as a blend of engagement, influence activities, and intelligence operations used to shape political environments and advance Beijing’s interests abroad.
Analysis: The pressure is now institutional. Congress is not only asking for more scrutiny; it is asking whether federal agencies have tolerated a gap between nonprofit law and foreign influence enforcement. If the briefing reveals little movement, lawmakers are likely to argue that the problem is not hidden anymore — it is unaddressed.
The central issue is transparency. If tax-exempt organizations can be used to advance foreign political goals, then the enforcement question is no longer theoretical. Lawmakers have put the nonprofit sector, the New York diaspora network, and the communist party of china in the same frame, and they are asking Treasury and the IRS to explain what they will do next.
