QUESTION:
Our leadership team is getting a lot of conflicting information as to what we can and cannot do regarding political campaigns.  Where can we go to find the rules?

OUR ANSWER FROM HORTYSPRINGER ATTORNEY NICK CALABRESE:
A 501(c)(3) organization cannot participate in or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements), any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.  The word “any” is emphasized because no de minimis amount of political intervention is permitted and the penalties can be harsh – penalties range from a warning, to an injunction, to a tax on prohibited political expenditures, to revocation of tax‑exempt status.

Since the penalties can be so serious, the IRS has provided a number of guides to help hospitals recognize and to avoid these penalties:

Rev. Rul. 2007‑41 provides 21 examples of Political Campaign Dos and Don’ts

April 12, 2024, Congressional Research Service Guide

August 19, 2024, IRS FAQ about the ban on Political Intervention

2024 IRS Mini Course on the ban on Political Intervention

We also recommend this short podcast by HortySpringer partners Dan Mulholland and Henry Casale in which they review the rules and also discuss the guidance from the IRS in terms of what a hospital can and cannot do this election season.

If you have a quick question about this, e‑mail Nick Calabrese at ncalabrese@hortyspringer.com.