Legal Guidance

Free legal advice to Churches and Clergy

Guidelines for Political Activities by Churches and Pastors - James Madison Center for Free Speech (PDF Format)

Do's and Don'ts for Political Activities of Pastors - James Madison Center for Free Speech (PDF Format)

Voting with a Clear Conscience by Fr. Frank Pavone: [Catholic Version] [Interdenominational Version] [Legal Opinion Letter about this publication in PDF format]

• IRS Document on Election Activity for Churches and c-3 Organizations

• Guidelines from the IRS (2007) -- [Spanish version]  (Requires Acrobat Reader)

• Commentary on IRS Guidelines by Jim Bopp, Jr. (Requires Acrobat Reader)

• Political Activity Guidelines for Catholic Organizations from the United States Bishops' Office of the General Counsel, 2007

• Guidelines for literature distribution in Church parking lots (Requires Acrobat Reader)

Voter Registration Guidelines

Voter registration drives fall within the activities that are permitted to tax-exempt organizations and churches.

Click here for guidance from the legal office of the United States Conference of Catholic bishops

Click here for guidelines from the Internal Revenue Service. (Requires Acrobat Reader)

Our Voter Registration Sunday's project has been examined and approved by experts in the relevant federal laws.  Click here for more information on this project. (first link requires Acrobat Reader)

A Legal Symposium: "The Church and Politics: Are We as Restricted as we Think?"

On June 17, 2003, Priests for Life and the Ave Maria School of Law co-sponsored a symposium for clergy and attorneys entitled "The Church and Politics: Are We as Restricted as We Think?"

Attorneys who spoke were James Bopp, Jr., of Bopp, Coleson & Bostrom, Professor Gerard Bradley of Notre Dame Law School, and Charles Watkins of Webster, Chamberlain & Bean.

There is much that pastors can do to call their congregations to active and informed participation in the political process. In documents like Living the Gospel of Life (1998), the US bishops have articulated such a call with clarity and passion. At the same time, many pastors remain unaware of the extent to which they can speak and act in this arena, and often believe they are far more restricted than the law actually requires. Our hope is that these symposium papers will give pastors a broader understanding of the law in this area, and assist them to fulfill their mission with greater confidence.

Their papers can be accessed, in written and audio format (mp3), by clicking the links below. 

Fr. Frank Pavone: Church and State: A Theological View [Text] and [Audio: Listen to MP3 or Download MP3]

Fr. Frank Pavone: Concluding Remarks: [Listen to MP3] or [Download MP3] (MP3 format)

Please note this page contains information from legal experts regarding elections Tax Law.  However, this does not constitute formal legal advice.  We recommend that you consult your attorneys but at the same time we recommend that your attorneys read this information.  Click here for a statement from Fr. Frank Pavone on Priests for Life, Legal Advice, and Catholic Dioceses and Institutions.

Elections Center

Priests for Life
PO Box 141172
Staten Island, NY 10314
Tel. 888-PFL-3448, (718) 980-4400
Fax 718-980-6515
Email mail@priestsforlife.org

Subscribe to Fr. Frank's bi-weekly prolife column (free): subscribe@priestsforlife.org 

Click here to See What Abortion Looks Like!

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