The Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee (MCDCC)—apparently unable to negotiate away the penalties it owed the Internal Revenue Service—voted Friday to pay off the remaining balance of $4,635.72.
The special meeting was opened to the public on Zoom, but all discussion was held in closed session until the closing vote, where members elected to “authorize the chair to remit the remaining balance to the IRS.”
The committee chair on Friday evening also released a statement about the IRS debt to “clarify inaccuracies that have been reported in the media regarding an IRS tax liability and the subsequent vote for resolution,” but did not specify what those inaccuracies were.
Committee leaders had told members in a closed session in June that the panel owed $13,608 to the IRS, after an agent stopped by their Rockville offices to threaten a lien, according to members of the committee and leaked documents. The debt stems from underpayment in 2017 and 2018.
The committee unanimously voted earlier this month to pay off the interest and principal owed to the IRS, $8,427, after a former MCDCC chair produced the funds. The committee also voted to allow current chair Saman Qadeer Ahmad to enter into negotiations to dismiss the penalties imposed.
“We have made a compromise to the IRS in good faith that if we are able to pay off the principal and interest, we may have penalties reduced or dismissed,” Ahmad said at the meeting, but also said the matter was still in negotiations.
Two committee members said it was their understanding that the vote Friday evening was to pay off the penalties. They spoke to MoCo360 on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.
MCDCC and Ahmad did not respond to questions from MoCo360 Saturday asking to confirm whether the vote on Friday was to pay off penalties.
Former MCDCC chair David Kunes had donated $8,427, the exact figure needed to pay off the principal and interest owed. Kunes was chair in 2018, when the taxes went unpaid.
Kunes, a contract adviser to Montgomery County Councilmember Will Jawando (D-At-large), has declined to comment on the matter.
The statement Friday night recounted the timeline of events related to the debt. The IRS “delivered a notice to the MCDCC Office stating that there was an outstanding federal tax liability owed for tax periods 2017-2018 related to employee payroll withholding” on June 1.
“From 2017-2018, payroll processing was handled internally and the IRS filing for this tax period had been done by the Treasurer at that time. In 2019, the MCDCC retained a professional payroll processing company to manage such matters. In February 2020, MCDCC moved offices into its current space at 12320 Parklawn Drive. The IRS confirmed that notices were mailed in 2022 to MCDCC’s old office address in Kensington, after mail forwarding had expired,” the release said.
The release said the current leadership was unaware of the debt until June 1.
“On August 2, 2023, MCDCC hosted a fundraiser to raise funds to pay the IRS. The MCDCC settled the tax obligation in two installment payments. It authorized the first payment on August 8th in the amount of $8,427.27, and on August 25th authorized the second payment of $4,635.72 for a total of $13,062.99,” the release said.
One of the committee members told MoCo360 that the press release “came as a surprise” to them and some others they talked to on the committee.
The member also said they were unaware of any fundraiser specifically to raise the funds for the IRS debt, unless this was in reference to Kunes’ contribution. At a previous MCDCC meeting, committee member Michelle Whittaker confirmed for the record that the $8,427 was donated by Kunes.
The committee held an Aug. 3 fundraiser with Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller.
“The Aug. 3 event was a part of a series of fundraisers the MCDCC has held this year to help cover the operational expenses of the MCDCC in addition to paying the outstanding liability owed to the IRS from 2017-2018,” Ahmad confirmed to MoCo360 in an email.
The MCDCC serves as the chapter of the Democratic Party in Montgomery County, and its duties include selecting candidates to replace Democratic General Assembly members from the county who leave their posts mid-term. The committee is responsible for 41% of Montgomery County delegation appointments. In 2023 alone, the committee was tasked with choosing four delegates and one state senator.
