Message from General Counsel for our Churches
This morning (July 8, 2025) we woke to the news that churches now have the freedom to endorse candidates from the pulpit.
What happened? The National Religious Broadcasters and Intercessors for America and a couple of churches sued the IRS. The plaintiffs alleged the Johnson Amendment, the law the prohibits all tax-exempt charitable organizations (501(c)(3)s) from intervening in political campaigns—i.e., endorsing candidates for political office— violates several constitutional rights of churches as well as the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The plaintiffs originally asked the court for an injunction against enforcing the Johnson Amendment for all 501(c)(3)s. Now the plaintiffs and the IRS have moved a federal district court in Texas to enter a consent judgment to settle the lawsuit., including the First Amendment,
The motion is for the court to enter a consent judgment, which is a judgment agreed upon by the parties to the case and which is approved by the judge. The proposed consent judgment states: “When a house of worship in good faith speaks to its congregation, through its customary channels of communication on matters of faith in connection with religious services, concerning electoral politics viewed through the lens of religious faith, it neither “participate[s]” nor “intervene[s]” in a “political campaign,” within the ordinary meaning of those words.” The consent judgment also acknowledges the IRS has not historically enforced the prohibition on political campaign intervention by churches. After some discussion of the doctrine of constitutional avoidance, the motion concludes: “For these reasons, the Johnson Amendment does not reach speech by a house of worship to its congregation, in connection with religious services through its customary channels of communication on matters of faith, concerning electoral politics viewed through the lens of religious faith.” The relief that will be accorded by the judgment is a permanent injunction against the IRS enforcing the prohibition on political campaign intervention against the plaintiffs “based on speech by a house of worship to its congregation in connection with religious services through its customary channels of communication on matters of faith, concerning electoral politics viewed through the lens of religious faith.”
What does this mean? The IRS does not have the authority to repeal legislation like the Johnson Amendment through a consent judgment to settle a lawsuit. But the motion for this consent judgment is a public statement by the IRS that it will not enforce the political campaign intervention prohibition against a church. It is a practice that is now public policy. Like much of this administration’s legislation-by-proclamation strategy, the extent of the impact is not yet fully known. Candidates may target churches and use them to funnel campaign funds. Churches that choose to endorse political candidates will divide on political endorsements. Churches and candidates will be beholden to one another in ways that will influence the churches’ mission and ministry.
What should we do? No IRS guidance exists on the boundaries of the policy. Churches can use the Our Faith, Our Vote resources to continue to be engaged in the political process in the ways that churches have always been engaged while carrying out the mission and ministry of their church.
Heather E. Kimmel (she/her)
General Counsel
United Church of Christ, National Ministries