The IRS has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the wake of an investigation into the tax-exempt status of several major service providers.
The companies include HFO, which provides services to individuals and small businesses; and corporate document services, which includes filing tax returns and providing other services.HFO’s former CEO and co-founder, Robert S. Siegel, died earlier this month.
SGS was one of the leaders in the industry when the IRS discovered that HFO was using tax-free donations from individuals and businesses to cover payroll, which has not been allowed by law.
The IRS investigation was the result of an audit of HFO by the Federal Election Commission.
Siegel was among several HFO executives who resigned in 2016.
In January, Siegel was charged with tax evasion and failure to file federal income tax returns.
He was later charged with lying to the FBI, which he denied.
The IRS is asking for the Chapter 11 protection of all the companies it has filed, including those that it has found to have violated federal laws and regulations.
The filing is not an admission of wrongdoing and it does not mean the companies are bankrupt.
The agencies said the filing does not affect any other assets or assets that could be recovered.
A spokesman for the IRS said that the agency had been investigating HFO for about three years and found no evidence that the company had engaged in illegal activity.
