“It will help us expand as an organization and institution,” Mr. O’Keefe said in an interview on Thursday.

He said the money saved with the status would help Project Veritas train and equip "an army" of citizen journalists to carry out its mission: "to investigate and expose corruption, dishonesty, self-dealing, waste, fraud and other misconduct in both public and private institutions in order to achieve a more ethical and transparent society."

The organization applied for tax exemption in August and received one request for further information from the I.R.S. before it granted approval. The Chronicle of Philanthropy has posted all of the documents the tax agency gave it, along with analysis.