{"id":2088,"date":"2023-04-15T18:22:43","date_gmt":"2023-04-15T22:22:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/womantowoman\/?p=2088"},"modified":"2023-04-22T14:27:02","modified_gmt":"2023-04-22T18:27:02","slug":"should-politically-active-churches-lose-their-tax-exemption","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/womantowoman\/2023\/04\/should-politically-active-churches-lose-their-tax-exemption\/","title":{"rendered":"Should Politically Active Churches Lose Their Tax-exemption?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

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(Courtesy Pixaby \/ geralt)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Many should \u2013 but there\u2019s a problem<\/strong><\/h2>\n

While millions of Americans scramble to file their 2022 federal income returns by April 18, one group can relax. Faith organizations and charities don\u2019t pay federal, state or local taxes on donations, gifts and other unearned income unless they become overtly political. Unfortunately, many churches bend federal tax law to the breaking point, which begs the question: should they lose their tax-exempt status?<\/em> Without question, I believe many of them should.<\/p>\n

What Does the Law Say?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The Johnson Amendment of 1954 grants churches tax-exempt status but bans them from involvement in most political activities. Churches \u201ccan engage in a limited amount of lobbying (including ballot measures) and advocate for or against issues that are in the political arena,\u201d according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), but they must be careful.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not qualified to offer tax advice or go beyond a superficial discussion of tax law. But I can direct you to the IRS website here here. <\/a>\u00a0For a Tax Foundation post, What If We Taxed Churches?<\/em>\u00a0\u00a0click here.<\/a><\/p>\n

What\u2019s the Problem?<\/h3>\n

Many churches obey the tax law, but some violate it without making any excuses or apologies. Meanwhile, the IRS turns a blind eye, according to the Texas Tribune.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cFor nearly 70 years, federal law has barred churches from directly involving themselves in political campaigns, but the IRS has largely abdicated its enforcement responsibilities as churches have become more brazen about publicly backing candidates,\u201d the Texas Tribune <\/em>said.<\/p>\n

Therein lies the problem.<\/p>\n

How Do Churches Bend Federal Tax Law to the Breaking Point?<\/h3>\n

The Texas Tribune <\/em>ran several articles in October and November 2022 about churches behaving badly in regard to tax law. One story reported that six days before a runoff election near Dallas, the pastor told congregants that demonic spirits were operating through members of city council. He also told them, \u201cI got a candidate that God wants to win. I got a mayor that God wants to unseat. God wants to undo. God wants to shift the balance of power in our city.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The pastor obviously wanted certain candidates to win or lose, but I seriously doubt that God cared.<\/p>\n

The Tribune <\/em>pointed out that \u201cwhat (the pastor) said that day in May 2021 was a violation of a long-standing federal law barring churches and nonprofits from directly or indirectly participating in political campaigns.\u201d Read the post here.<\/a><\/p>\n

The suburban Dallas church\u2019s violation wasn\u2019t an isolated situation. Over a period of two years, the Texas Tribune<\/em> and a nonprofit news organization called ProPublica identified 20 churches that apparently violated federal tax law.<\/p>\n

Violations included:<\/p>\n