Since 1954, the Johnson Amendment has prohibited nonprofit organizations, including churches, from endorsing or opposing political candidates.
Courts have repeatedly upheld the amendment’s constitutionality. In the 1999 Branch Ministries Inc vs. Rossotti case, a D.C. District Court rejected a church’s claim that it was being persecuted because of its conservative views, determining: “The government has a compelling interest in maintaining the integrity of the tax system and in not subsidizing partisan political activity, and Section 501(c)(3) is the least restrictive means of accomplishing that purpose.”
Still, for years, the religious right has attempted to loosen or repeal the rule. In 2008, the Alliance Defending Freedom launched a protest to challenge its constitutionality. Shortly after taking office, former president Trump promised to “get rid of and totally destroy the Johnson Amendment,” though his 2017 executive order failed to do so.
The most recent attack is a Texas lawsuit filed on August 28 by a group of churches and religious organizations that allege the IRS discriminates against churches and the Johnson Amendment is an unconstitutional violation of their right to free speech. The plaintiffs further accuse the IRS of enforcing its regulations “in an arbitrary and capricious manner… that disfavors conservative organizations and conservative, religious organizations.”
In the 70 years since the passage of the Johnson Amendment, we know of only two churches that have had their tax-exempt status revoked due to political activity. In 2022, investigative journalists from ProPublica and The Texas Tribune found more violations by church leaders over a two-year period than “the total number of churches the IRS has investigated [in the past decade].”
The reporters concluded “the IRS has largely abdicated its enforcement responsibilities as churches have become more brazen about publicly backing candidates.”
American Atheists believes the Johnson Amendment should be enforced evenhandedly, and our legal team is closely monitoring efforts to repeal or undermine it. In doing so, we stand with nearly 80% of Americans as well as our nation’s founding fathers, who feared private associations with special interests posed a threat to democracy.
Without the Johnson Amendment, churches, which already do not need to report earnings to the IRS like other nonprofits, become black boxes that can be used to filter an unlimited amount of untraceable donations into political campaigns. It’s a recipe for corruption and fraud. We must not allow religious privilege to undermine our democracy.
If you want to learn more about the Johnson Amendment, I discussed it on this episode of the We Dissent podcast. And if you’d like to support our legal work, please contribute $10 or more today.
Sincerely,
Alison Gill
Vice President, Legal & Policy
American Atheists is a 501(c)(3) non-partisan, nonprofit educational organization that relies on the support of members like you. Contributions are tax-deductible. Our Federal Tax ID Number is 74-2466507 and our Combined Federal Campaign number is 52217.
American Atheists
225 Cristiani Street
Cranford, NJ 07016
United States