The president signs
an executive order that allows churches to engage in political activity without having to pay taxes.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday said he would direct the Internal Revenue Service to relax enforcement of rules barring taxexempt churches from participating in politics as part of a much-anticipated executive order on religious liberties.
The order, which Trump formally unveiled in a Rose Garden ceremony with religious leaders, also offers unspecified “regulatory relief” for religious objectors to an Obama administration mandate, already scaled back by the courts, that required contraception services as part of health plans.
“For too long the federal government has used the state as a weapon against people of faith,” Trump said, later telling those gathered for the event that “you’re now in a position to say what you want to say . . . No one should be censoring sermons or targeting pastors.”
But the sweep of the order, unveiled on the National Day of Prayer, was significantly narrower than a February draft, which had alarmed civil libertarians, gay rights and other liberal advocacy groups and prompted threats of lawsuits.
Among other things, that version included a controversial provision that could have allowed federal contractors to discriminate against LGBT employees or single mothers on the basis of faith.
The order released Thursday instead included a blanket statement that “it is the policy of the administration to protect and vigorously promote religious liberty.”
While many in the Rose Garden applauded Trump’s action, some religious groups criticized him for what they characterized as a vague directive that didn’t live up to his campaign rhetoric.
But even the less-sweeping version prompted threats of lawsuits from opponents.
The advocacy group Public Citizen and the American Civil Liberties Union both announced plans to sue over the relaxation of rules on politicking from the pulpit.
“The actions taken today are a broadside to our country’s long-standing commitment to the separation of church and state,” ACLU executive director Anthony D. Romero said in a statement.
As a candidate, Trump declared he would “totally destroy” what’s known as the Johnson Amendment, a six-decade-old ban on churches and other taxexempt organizations supporting political candidates.
The provision applies to all tax-exempt organizations, including many colleges and foundations. But Christian groups have complained most vociferously about its use.
The provision is written in the tax code and would require an act of Congress to repeal fully.
Trump’s order instead directs the Internal Revenue Service to “exercise maximum enforcement discretion of the prohibition.” Such a directive would not necessarily extend beyond a Trump presidency.
Violations of the Johnson Amendment are infrequently pursued by the IRS, but evangelicals claim it has been used selectively against them, preventing Christian leaders from speaking freely in church.
Experts also questioned how much effect the order will have given it will take an act of Congress to fully address the issue.
Rabbi David Saperstein, former ambassador-atlarge for international religious freedom, said the directive’s language doesn’t seem to make a significant difference in existing practices.
“People committed to the Johnson Amendment will be troubled he’s continuing down a path toward changing existing law,” he said. “Those who are advocating for a significant change are going to be disappointed.”
The amendment is named for Lyndon B. Johnson, who introduced it in the Senate in 1954, nine years before he became president.
Under current law, churches are free to promote political candidates but must forgo such activity to obtain tax-exempt status.