Good afternoon folks - 

You sent me to Congress with a specific mission: cut wasteful spending and make Washington squeal.  

That's why, every month I research and identify areas of waste, abuse and inefficiencies. Then, I give out my Squeal Award, which recognizes a Washington expense, program or concept that has proven to be wasteful and must be cut. 

This month, I'm looking to close a loophole in our tax code that gives special treatment to multi-million dollar organizations... 


Squeal Award: Cutting Pro-Sports Perks

Whether you’re an avid sports fan or just there for the good food, you know that professional sports leagues bring in big bucks. Through television rights, membership dues and more, these leagues rake in millions, or even billions, of dollars annually. 

You may be surprised to learn that these multi-million dollar pro sports leagues also qualify for 501(c)(6) tax-exempt status. I find it hard to understand why organizations like these need special treatment from the federal government. 

While some organizations have voluntarily ended their tax-exempt status in recent years, others, including the Professional Golf Association (PGA) and National Hockey League (NHL) continue to use this tax-exempt status while still bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue. It’s an unnecessary and costly cross-check to the American taxpayer.

Senator Angus King of Maine and I are calling for these pro-sports leagues to be put in the penalty box and are working to close this unnecessary and wasteful loophole in our tax code by introducing the Properly Reducing Overexemptions for Sports (PRO Sports) Act to level the playing field

The PRO Sports Act would revoke the 501(c)(6), tax-exempt status of professional sports leagues with over $10 million in gross receipts saving roughly $100 million in taxpayer dollars over 10 years. That’s a lot of overpriced hot dogs and peanuts!

As our national debt continues to skyrocket, we must cut unnecessary costs and protecting your hard-earned dollars is my number one goal. I’m presenting this month’s Squeal Award to this wasteful pro sports tax exemption and look forward to working with my teammates to put a stop to this costly perk.


PRO Sports Act in the News

KCRG: Ernst Introduces PRO Sports Act to Save Taxpayer Dollars

 

KETV: Ernst Wants to End Tax Exemptions for Pro Sports Leagues


Do you have an example of government waste or inefficiencies that I should take a look at? Send me an email by clicking here.

Thank you!