IRS stops enforcing Johnson Amendment, allowing church political endorsements

The IRS under the Trump administration effectively stopped enforcing the Johnson Amendment by July 2025, entering a consent agreement allowing specific churches to endorse political candidates without losing tax-exempt status. The Johnson Amendment was enacted in 1954 by then-Sen. Lyndon Johnson to bar 501(c)(3) nonprofits from campaigning for political candidates. Trump had issued an executive order in 2017 directing lenient enforcement. The Treasury Department announced in April 2026 it would issue formal guidance permitting religious organizations to make candidate endorsements.