The Johnson Amendment — a 70-year-old law that keeps nonprofits nonpartisan — is under threat.
Repealing this law risks turning the charities you hold dear — including organizations such as houses of worship, hunger relief nonprofits, domestic violence shelters, foundations, and even animal welfare organizations dear — into tools for partisan politics, opening the floodgates for political dark money and eroding the trust that nonprofits have spent generations building.
Tell our elected officials and the world that you want clear divisions between nonprofits and politicians by signing this national letter today to defend the Johnson Amendment and protect the integrity of the nonprofit sector.
Why this Matters
Efforts to repeal or weaken the Johnson Amendment would allow political donors to route tax-deductible contributions through nonprofits to support their preferred candidates — all while receiving generous tax breaks.
- Imagine this: A donor gives $1 million to a nonprofit that endorses a candidate. That money is used for partisan events, campaign literature, or voter outreach — and the donor writes it off on their taxes. And while political consultants and power brokers gain, you and I lose. When nonprofits lose trust, our families, friends and neighbors see Children go to bed hungry because food banks lose donors and credibility.
- Veterans can’t access mental health care when nonprofits are forced to scale back.
- Domestic violence shelters close their doors.
- After-school programs disappear.
Our most trusted organizations become vehicles for political manipulation — and the people who rely on them are left behind. Repealing the Johnson Amendment is just one of many coordinated attempts to undermine nonprofits and the vital work they do in our communities.
A Coordinated Attack on Nonprofits Is Underway
This administration and its allies in Congress have ramped up their attacks on the nonprofit sector — using hearings, headlines, and legislation to discredit nonprofits and strip them of independence. These efforts to weaken civil society, including the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Oversight holding a hearing titled “How Leftist Nonprofit Networks Exploit Federal Tax Dollars to Advance a Radical Agenda , the House Homeland Security Committee convening “An Inside Job: How NGOs Facilitated the Biden Border Crisis", and the House DOGE Subcommittee hearing "NGOs Gone Wild" are based on false premises and political distortions — not evidence.
Here are the facts:
- Nonprofits are highly regulated and accountable.
Nonprofits receiving federal funds must comply with strict legal and financial guidelines. Their work is transparent, audited, and aligned with the goals set by the awarding agencies — not driven by hidden agendas.
- Framing public-interest work as “radical” is political rhetoric, not fact.
Supporting refugees, providing housing, protecting civil rights, or offering humanitarian aid does not make an organization “anti-American.” These efforts reflect widely supported community needs — not subversive activity.
- These attacks are part of a broader effort to silence and defund nonprofits.
By painting trusted organizations as enemies of the state, these hearings aim to erode public trust and justify stripping funding from groups that support marginalized communities.
If a nonprofit were using federal funds improperly, it would already be in violation of federal law — and subject to enforcement by agencies like the Office of the Inspector General. These are not “exploits” — they are closely tracked and publicly reported uses of public funds.
Nonprofits Are Not the Problem — They’re the Solution, but Only with Your Support
Nonprofits are one of the last remaining spaces in America where people of different beliefs come together around shared goals: feeding families, protecting the environment, caring for veterans, and building strong communities.
The Johnson Amendment protects that space. Repealing it would destroy it.
Sign the letter. Share it widely. And take a stand today to keep nonprofits focused on service — not politics.