Tax Preparer Takes Responsibility for $545,736 Reporting Error Involving Bishop Marvin Winans

 

DETROIT — The president and CEO of a tax preparation firm serving churches and nonprofit organizations has accepted responsibility for what he described as an error in federal tax filings that incorrectly attributed more than $545,000 in compensation to Bishop Marvin L. Winans.

Dr. H. Michael Chitwood, president and CEO of Chitwood & Chitwood, addressed the controversy during a recent service at Perfecting Church in Detroit, where he told congregants that Winans had received no compensation from Perfecting Community Development Corporation, a tax-exempt nonprofit organization.

Chitwood's remarks followed reporting by The Christian Post concerning the organization's IRS Form 990, which listed Winans as president and CEO and attributed $538,955 in reportable compensation and $6,781 in other compensation to him, totaling $545,736.

Chitwood acknowledged that the figures appeared on the organization's 2025 tax filing but said the amounts had been entered in the wrong column.

"No compensation was paid to Bishop Marvin Winans by Perfecting Community Development Corporation," Chitwood told the congregation.

He said Winans had never received a salary, advances, allowances, reimbursements or other financial benefits from the organization. According to Chitwood, the income information elsewhere in the filing showed that the money had been paid to others.

Chitwood said the error occurred during preparation of the tax return and accepted responsibility on behalf of his firm, which has provided tax and financial services to churches and nonprofit organizations for three generations.

"I signed the returns," Chitwood said, acknowledging that although he did not personally prepare the documents, he was ultimately responsible for their accuracy.

He emphasized that neither Winans nor church administrator Cindy Flowers was responsible for the reporting mistake, explaining that church leaders had relied on his firm's professional expertise to handle the organization's tax filings.

The controversy arose after The Christian Post reviewed publicly available IRS documents and reported the compensation figures. Chitwood acknowledged that the publication accurately reported numbers appearing on the return but disputed whether those figures represented compensation actually received by Winans.

He also criticized the publication's handling of the matter, arguing that reporters should have contacted his firm directly for clarification.

Legal review underway

Chitwood announced that his firm's legal department had taken possession of Perfecting Community Development Corporation's financial records and begun a comprehensive review and audit.

The review will examine the organization's financial documents, reconcile reported compensation with underlying records and identify any additional errors requiring correction.

Chitwood said his firm would cover the cost of the review because it was responsible for the mistake.

Once the legal team completes its examination and provides its findings, Chitwood said the firm will prepare amended tax returns and submit them to the Internal Revenue Service.

He indicated that some corrections would involve informational reporting rather than taxable income.

Chitwood also said the review would not be rushed in response to media attention and that corrected filings would be submitted to the IRS rather than distributed directly to news organizations.

Sworn affidavit presented

Following his remarks, Chitwood returned to the microphone to present Winans and Flowers with what he described as a sworn affidavit supporting his statements.

Chitwood said the document had been signed, notarized and certified, emphasizing the seriousness of making sworn declarations concerning the financial records.

In this video, Dr. H Michael Chitwood addresses the controversy