[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2931 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2931

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to clarify the restrictions 
          on the lobbying and campaign activities of churches.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 21, 2001

Mr. Crane (for himself, Mr. Armey, Mr. DeLay, Mr. Blunt, Mr. Doolittle, 
 and Mr. Norwood) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
                    the Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to clarify the restrictions 
          on the lobbying and campaign activities of churches.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Bright-Line Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. CLARIFICATION OF RESTRICTION ON LOBBYING AND CAMPAIGN 
              ACTIVITIES OF CHURCHES.

    (a) In General.--Section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
(relating to exemption from tax on corporations, certain trusts, etc.) 
is amended by redesignating subsection (p) as subsection (q) and by 
inserting after subsection (o) the following new subsection:
    ``(p) Expenditures by Churches, etc., To Influence Legislation or 
Participate in Campaign Activities.--
            ``(1) Expenditures to influence legislation.--An 
        organization to which this subsection applies shall be denied 
        exemption from taxation under subsection (a) because a 
        substantial part of the activities of such organization 
        consists of carrying on propaganda, or otherwise attempting, to 
        influence legislation, but only if such organization normally 
        makes lobbying expenditures (as defined in section 4911(d)) for 
        each taxable year in excess of an amount equal to 20 percent of 
        such organization's gross revenues for such year.
            ``(2) Expenditures to participate in campaigns.--An 
        organization to which this subsection applies shall be denied 
        exemption from taxation under subsection (a) because such 
        organization participates in, or intervenes in (including the 
        publishing or distributing of statements), any political 
        campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for 
        public office, but only if such organization normally makes 
        expenditures for such purpose for each taxable year in excess 
        of an amount equal to 5 percent of such organization's gross 
        revenues for such year.
            ``(3) Aggregate limit.--An organization to which this 
        subsection applies shall be denied exemption from taxation 
        under subsection (a) if the aggregate of the expenditures 
        described in paragraph (1) and the expenditures described in 
        paragraph (2) which such organization normally makes for each 
        taxable year exceeds an amount equal to 20 percent of such 
        organization's gross revenues for such year.
            ``(4) Gross revenues.--For purposes of this subsection, the 
        term `gross revenues' means the sum of--
                    ``(A) the organization's gross income for the 
                taxable year, and
                    ``(B) the aggregate contributions and gifts 
                received by such organization during such year.
            ``(5) Organizations to which subsection applies.--This 
        subsection shall apply to any disqualified organization (as 
        defined in subsection (h)(5)) which is described in subsection 
        (c)(3).
            ``(6) Affiliated organizations.--If, for any taxable year, 
        2 or more organizations to which this subsection applies are 
        members of an affiliated group of organizations (as defined in 
        section 4911(f)(2))--
                    ``(A) paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and (4) shall be 
                applied by treating such group as 1 organization, and
                    ``(B) if such group exceeds the expenditure 
                limitation of paragraph (1), (2), or (3), each 
                organization to which this subsection applies which is 
                a member of such group shall be treated as not 
                described in subsection (c)(3).
        The preceding sentence shall not be applied so as to treat an 
        organization which is not (without regard to the preceding 
        sentence) exempt from tax by reason of paragraph (1), (2), or 
        (3) as being so exempt.''
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to taxable years beginning after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.
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