Individual Activity in Election Season

Employees and volunteers of public charities often participate in the political and democratic process in ways that connect to their organization's mission. While a 501(c)(3) cannot engage in partisan activity, individuals don't give up their First Amendment rights when they are staff, board members, or volunteers of a public charity. In our last episode, we talked about candidate appearances at charitable events. But what if the call is coming from inside the house? In this episode, we'll share some practical tips and best practices to help you engage in electoral work as an individual while keeping your organization safely within the rules to protect its tax-exempt status.

Attorneys for this episode

Victor Rivera

Quyen Tu

Sarah Efthymiou

Show notes

Basic rule: 501(c)(3) organizations are prohibited from participating in partisan political activity. This rule also applies to anyone acting on an official capacity on behalf of the c3. This means that (c)(3) leaders, staff, and volunteers may not use the facilities, equipment, personnel, or other c3 resources to provide support to or oppose a candidate or campaign. However, this prohibition does not apply to the activities of officers, directors, or employees of 501(c)(3)s who are acting in their individual capacity.

Best Practices: Election Activities of Individuals Associated with 501(c)(3)s

Know when you're on the clock. 501(c)(3) staff may work on political campaigns outside of work hours, or while using their available leave time. However, time for which a charity compensates a staff member is also the charity's resource and should not be used for supporting or opposing candidates. Even unpaid time off could be problematic if permitted to staff outside of standard personnel policy limits and preferentially allow them to volunteer on some campaigns and not others.

Don't use c3 resources for political purposes. A charity should not allow its assets or facilities to be used for individuals' personal campaign work (including obvious resources like letterhead, photocopiers, and telephones, as well as perhaps less obvious ones like distribution lists, postal mailing permits, and email accounts). And, since 501(c)(3)-sponsored events use the organization's reputation and goodwill, 501(c)(3) representatives cannot support or oppose candidates at events.

Adopt an election-season policy. 501(c)(3) organizations should make staff aware, in writing, of policies against using organizational reso