Markey Accused of Tax Evasion by GOP PAC

A Republican super PAC is accusing Massachusetts Senate candidate Ed Markey of failing to pay state income taxes in Maryland, where he owns a $1.3 million home, the Boston Herald reports.

America Rising asked the Maryland comptroller to investigate the Democratic congressman, who will face off against GOP rival Gabriel Gomez in the special Senate election on Tuesday to fill the seat left open by the appoint of John Kerry as secretary of state.

"It appears from a review of news accounts and Maryland law that Rep. Markey may in fact be a resident of Maryland for tax purposes and, thus may owe Maryland taxes and should file a Maryland state tax return," America Rising Executive Director Tim Miller wrote in a letter to the comptroller.

Markey filed a return in Massachusetts, but the PAC said that based on the estimated time he spent in Maryland during 2012, he was required under law to file a Maryland tax return as well.

Markey's residency status has been controversial since the 1990s, when the Herald reported that he never owned a home in his Massachusetts district, instead claiming his parents' home in Malden, Mass., as his legal address.

Markey purchased his parents' home in 2001, but Republican opponents have used the issue to brand him as a Washington insider, out of touch with the needs of his constituents.