Free Speech Fairness Act

This bill would say that when a charitable organization makes statements as part of its regular, customary work and those statements cause only de minimis extra expenses, the organization would not lose its tax-exempt status or be treated as intervening in a political campaign.

• Charitable organizations: Would let 501(c)(3) groups speak on candidate-related topics in the ordinary course of their activities without risking loss of exempt status, so long as incremental costs are de minimis.
• Donors and estate planners: Keeps an organization treated under the listed tax code provisions, including sections 170(c)(2), 2055, 2106, 2522, and 4955, which affect donor and estate tax rules.
• Tax penalties: Narrows when excise taxes or political intervention rules apply by adding the ordinary-course plus de minimis expense test.