The Sunday quiet was broken not by a hymn but by a headline: in early July, the IRS—long the tacit enforcer of the Johnson Amendment’s ban on electioneering—signaled in a court filing that religious leaders may endorse candidates during worship without costing their churches a tax exemption. The move didn’t repeal the law; it reframed it. Endorsements spoken in the sanctuary, in the context of faith, are to be treated less like campaign stumping and more like protected religious expression. Applause and alarm arrived in equal measure. Evangelical networks called it overdue. Campaign-finance watchdogs warned of a church-shaped loophole in the nation’s disclosure regime.
Texas became a proving ground within days. With more megachurches than any other state, pastors there were suddenly cast as potential power brokers—able to bless a candidate from the same pulpit where they bless a marriage. “Epicenter” was the word one observer used. The IRS, meanwhile, didn’t touch the rest of the Johnson Amendment: non-church 501(c)(3)s—schools, hospitals, foundations—still cannot endorse candidates. The new lane is narrow and specific: religious speech in religious services. Everything else—mailers, PAC-adjacent “voter guides,” fundraising for candidates—remains off-limits to charities, and risky for churches.
Beyond politics, two quieter shifts will shape budgets and bookkeeping this year and next:
- The 1099-K phase-in is real, finally. After years of false starts, platforms like PayPal, Venmo, and ticketing sites must send more 1099-Ks—not for personal gifts, but for payments for goods or services. The IRS locked a glidepath: $5,000 in 2024 activity, $2,500 in 2025, and $600 in 2026 and beyond. That means more donors and volunteers will receive forms that look scary but aren’t necessarily taxable; education beats panic.
- TEOS got an upgrade. The IRS’s Tax-Exempt Organization Search—the public window into your 990s, revocations, and determination letters—was refreshed in August, raising the stakes for accuracy and narrative clarity in your filings. Think of it as your digital lobby: donors, journalists, and counterparties will visit.
And because every mile matters in ministry, a reminder: the 2025 charitable mileage rate is 14¢/mile (fixed by statute), while business is 70¢ and medical/moving 21¢. Reimburse above 14¢ for volunteers and the excess is typically taxable compensation. Plan accordingly.
What this really means inside the building
The headline shift around sermons is both narrower and messier than the discourse suggests. The IRS didn’t publish a glossy new revenue ruling; it took a litigation position that reinterprets “political intervention” at the altar. That leaves gray zones—What counts as a “service”? How much coordination with a campaign tips speech into intervention?—and it invites uneven practice. Expect test cases. Expect scrutiny. And expect calls for Congress to either codify or curtail the opening.
Meanwhile, the compliance work is pragmatic, not philosophical: receipts that separate gifts from fees; clean 990 narratives; mileage policies that won’t trip payroll; and clear, written guardrails for clergy and staff about what changes—and what doesn’t.
The short list: actions for boards, pastors, and nonprofit executives
- Tune your political-activity policy (churches): Permit, restrict, or forbid in-service endorsements—but be explicit. Ban organizational resources from aiding campaigns outside worship contexts. Train, minute, and audit. (Other 501(c)(3)s: your prohibition is unchanged.)
- Prep for 1099-K confusion: Brief staff and volunteers that a form can arrive at $2,500 of 2025 activity and doesn’t, by itself, make a gift taxable. Update acknowledgments to distinguish donations from quid-pro-quo payments.
- Treat TEOS as your storefront: Before filing, read your own public profile the way a major donor or reporter would. Tighten program descriptions and governance disclosures.
- Lock in mileage: Set volunteer reimbursements at 14¢ unless you’re intentionally grossing up—and then run it through payroll.
Mind your category: If you’re not a church, nothing changed about candidate endorsements. If you are, the opening is only during services and tethered to religious expression.
