What guidance does IRS Publication 1828 give to clergy about distinguishing personal speech from organizational endorsements?
Executive summary
IRS Publication 1828 tells clergy that individual political speech is not implicitly banned by a church’s tax-exempt status, but it draws a practical line: when speech occurs as part of official organizational activity, or uses organizational resources or identity, it can become a prohibited political endorsement that jeopardizes a 501(c) exemption [1] [2]. The publication offers fact‑pattern guidance—examples, timing tests, and indicators of organizational attribution—rather than a single bright‑line rule [2] [3].
1. What the IRS says: individual versus organizational activity
Publication 1828 makes clear the statutory baseline: prohibitions on political campaign activity apply to tax‑exempt organizations, not to the private political speech of individuals, including ministers, but context matters—speech by a minister may be treated as organizational activity if made in an official capacity or with organizational imprimatur [1] [2]. The IRS illustrates this with scenarios in which a minister’s personal endorsement printed with permission in a newspaper was treated as an individual act, while other communications by clergy widely identified with their church could be seen as organizational [2].
2. Practical tests the IRS uses to distinguish personal speech
Publication 1828 suggests a multi‑factor, fact‑driven approach: whether the communication is part of an ongoing series of communications by the organization, whether it is timed to coincide with an election, and whether the message identifies a candidate in a way tied to organizational activity or non‑electoral events (for example, a legislative vote) [1]. Those factors function as operational tests to assess whether a message is attributable to the religious organization or remains an individual’s private expression [1] [3].
3. Examples the IRS gives and their purpose
The publication supplies hypotheticals—such as ministers named in a candidate’s ad and ministers speaking in personal capacities versus speaking as church leaders—to show how identical words can have different legal effects depending on presentation and attribution [2]. These examples are not rulings but explanatory tools intended to help churches and clergy evaluate real‑world situations before an endorsement is framed as organizational activity [2] [4].
4. Why the distinction matters: tax status and legal risk
The stakes are explicit in the guide: political campaign intervention by a 501(c) can jeopardize tax‑exempt status and the special federal tax treatment churches enjoy, so Publication 1828 frames the individual/organizational distinction as a compliance issue for avoiding activities that may jeopardize exemption [4] [5]. The IRS therefore counsels caution when clergy engage in political speech linked to their office, church channels, or resources [3].
5. Ambiguities, alternative views and institutional motives
Although the IRS frames the guidance as neutral compliance advice, enforcement uncertainty remains because the factors are evaluative rather than absolute; legal advisers and denominational counsel commonly interpret Publication 1828 as requiring contextual judgment rather than providing a bright‑line safe harbor [6] [1]. Advocacy and clergy‑support organizations that summarize the guidance may emphasize free‑speech protection for ministers (potentially reflecting pastoral advocacy interests) while institutional regulators emphasize organizational risk—showing how institutional agendas shape how the guidance is presented [1] [6].
6. What Publication 1828 does not do
The guide does not—and cannot in this format—answer every borderline case or substitute for legal advice; it provides examples, factors, and references but not definitive case rulings, so questions about specific sermons, bulletin language, or use of church resources should be resolved with counsel or IRS guidance beyond the publication itself [3] [4]. The publication points readers to broader IRS materials and to the larger statutory framework that governs political campaign activity by tax‑exempt entities [3] [5].