IRS says official at centre of tea party scandal retiring; Lois Lerner had been on paid leave

WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service says an official at the centre of the agency’s tea party scandal is retiring.

Lois Lerner headed the IRS division that handles applications for tax-exempt status when she was placed on paid leave in May. While she was in charge, the agency acknowledged that agents improperly targeted tea party groups for extra scrutiny when they applied for tax-exempt status from 2010 to 2012.

Lerner first disclosed the targeting at a law conference in May, when she was asked a planted question about IRS treatment of political groups. Less than two weeks later, she refused to answer questions at a congressional hearing, citing her constitutional right not to incriminate herself.

Republicans in Congress have repeatedly called for her to be fired.