We all know that college football is big business.
With multi-million dollar TV contracts, conference realignments and such everyone affiliated with the sport is looking to cash in. That's fine...it is the American way.
Capitalism if you will.
But when tax exempt organizations abuse that privilege sooner or later someone will take take notice....
Nonprofit, tax-exempt status designation allows businesses to avoid paying taxes because they are a community trust. The government is obviously interested in such organizations justifying those tax breaks.
Summary: After 13 years of dodging and deflecting every other kind of criticism, the BCS doesn't need a tax law headache. The BCS defending its controversial postseason is one thing. Defending the numbers in its books to an IRS agent is another. Would the IRS hesitate at all in taking on college football's big bowls?
"I don't think they'd blink an eye," said veteran tax attorney Wayne Henry.
Henry, of the national firm Stinson, Morrison, Hecker, should know. He chairs the firm's Nonprofit Tax-Exempt Organizations Practice Group out of Omaha, having formerly worked for the IRS chief counsel's office. That's not to say anything is in the works or that the BCS is even worried. It's just another front opened up on the sport's postseason battlefront.
"The IRS has said [in general], 'We're going to be in the compliance arena now. What was acceptable in the past is no longer acceptable in the future ...' " said Henry, who later added, "There's greater scrutiny by the federal government and state government of nonprofit, tax-exempt organizations, in part, I think ... because there is a large federal and state deficit."
Read that last sentence again...
Anyone who thinks that the government has better things to do that worry about something like college sports is misinformed.
When it comes to money the government wants its cut and then some.
They don't care where they get it or who is involved...especially if the offending party abuses its privilege.
In the grand scheme of things the government could care less about whether or not there should be a play-off or the BCS system that is currently in place. They do care about filling the government kitty.
You can also say the same thing about the effort USC alum Joe Shell is putting forth in calling out the NCAA. It isn't about USC...its about a tax exempt organization abusing its powers in the enforcement of their own rules to punish (or not) schools that break the rules.
With the economy they way it is, you don't get to act like the IOC with their lavish spending and sooner or later if you continue to take a Sharpie marker to the "rights" that the organization itself says that member institutions are accorded during an investigation people are going to take notice.
People who happen to have oversight.
It doesn't matter what your political persuasion is...Republicans and Democrats on these committees will do what it takes to get more money coming into the government. And with tone that we are seeing nationally against fat cats on both sides of the aisle the BCS and soon the NCAA will find themselves in the crossfire.
It just goes to show you, it doesn't matter what business you are in or what side of the issue that you are on...
It is always about the money!