"The Tax People" Insists No Wrongoing

Michael Cooper, CEO of Renaissance, aka "The Tax People" insists that his program is legal. Cooper has been involved in two regulatory actions previously. A company spokesman claims that the raid by Federal investigators on October 12 was the result of negative publicity in a recent New York Times article. The company claims to be operating its business as usual following that raid.

On September 13, 2000, the Times published an article describing problems with "The Tax People." In the article they observed that the Federal government was unlikely to take any action.

Clifton Jolley, a Renaissance spokesman, claimed that "The New York Times runs a front page story saying the Internal Revenue Service will do nothing. (A month later), agents show up in body armor to seize records. Do the math," according to the Kansas City Star on October 13.

In addition to ongoing investigations by the Kansas Attorney General, Missouri and Hawaii are also investigating The Tax People for possible pyramid scheme violations.

Kansas Warns Representatives

On October 13, a spokesperson for the office of the Kansas Attorney General warned representatives of The Tax People that they could also be liable for pyramid scheme violations, a Level 9 Felony in that state. She suggested that they might want to seek counsel from their own attorney rather than calling the Attorney General's office. At this point in the investigation, a call from a marketer for the company could provide the Attorney General with evidence to use against that representative.

The investigations into "The Tax People" are drawing national attention. The Topeka Capital Journal reported on October 17 that:

"The Kansas attorney general's office has received inquiries about its investigation of Renaissance from attorneys general, securities exchange commission offices, federal trade commission offices, district attorneys and consumer services departments in Missouri, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Minnesota, Colorado, California, Florida and North Dakota, said Tiffany Ball, a spokeswoman for Attorney General Carla Stovall."

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