Under the Internal Revenue Code, all § 501(c)(3) organizations (including churches and other ministries) are prohibited from, directly or indirectly, participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for elective public office. Violation of this prohibition may result in revocation of tax-exempt status or the imposition of excise taxes, or both.
This legislation and its attending threats to withdraw churches’ tax-exempt status is all that is necessary to persuade many of God’s churches and His people to retreat from the public square. However, there is still much that can and should be done that does not violate this “political campaign intervention prohibition.”
The responsibility of our pastors and churches is to clearly define the left and right lateral limits of what is permissible under the law, and then take full advantage of every inch of maneuver space in between to be the positive influence on our communities and governments that we have been called to be.
Faith Wins has compiled a helpful quick-reference list of What Churches Can and Cannot Do in Politics. Generally speaking, ministries may engage in the following activities, if done in a non-partisan (strictly neutral) manner:
- Promote voter registration
- Encourage voter participation
- Provide voter education (e.g. candidate visits, voter guides etc.)
The Christian Law Association offers a tremendous set of resources regarding this subject. Pastors are encouraged to contact them and request those resources so that they can fully understand their church’s maneuver space within the law and how to safely use it.
Questions a pastor or church delegation could ask might include things like:
- May candidates be invited to briefly address our congregation?
- While any candidate would be welcome, is it considered “partisan” to intentionally seek out only those candidates who could theoretically be from any party but whose policy views align with biblical values?
- Can we decline requests by candidates to visit, when their declared worldview is clearly at odds with what we believe, without being in jeopardy of partisan accusations?
- If candidates ask to use our facilities (for meetings, town halls, rallies, etc.) should we let them?
- If candidates are permitted to use our facilities, should they be restricted from using certain areas (i.e. permit use of the gym, fellowship hall, parking lot, ball fields, pavilion, etc….but not the sanctuary or the chapel)?
- If allowing such candidate activity on church/school property is permitted, how exclusive can we be with that permission? Must we permit candidates whose values do not align with biblical principles as well as those who do?
- Are there specific activities that we should not permit anywhere on the premises?
- Is it permissible to make petitions available for signatures in the church lobby (and to perhaps announce such involvement opportunities during a service) for purposes such as putting one or more candidates on the ballot, holding elected officials accountable, and/or advocating for specific policies?