On Religious Freedom Day, Hudson Announces Co-Sponsorship of Free Speech Bill

On Religious Freedom Day, Hudson Announces Co-Sponsorship of Free Speech Bill
Bill Restores Free Speech Rights of Religious Organizations

Washington, DC- Today Congressman Richard Hudson (NC-08) announced his co-sponsorship of H.R. 127, a bill necessary to repeal the 1954 Johnson Amendment and restore free speech rights of houses of worship and other non-profit organizations.

The Johnson Amendment was inserted in a tax bill by then-Senator Lyndon B. Johnson to prevent non-profit organizations from intervening in political campaigns. The Amendment has had a serious impact on free speech due to its broad interpretation by the IRS. The law has threatened churches with the loss of their tax-exempt status if pastors speak from the pulpit about political candidates or public issues of the day.

“The only citizens in this country who don’t have free speech are pastors, thanks to a political move by Lyndon Johnson in 1954. It’s long past time we restore their rights,” said Hudson. “It seems that we are being faced with new restrictions on our Constitutional freedoms every day. This is an important move to ensure that no voice will be silenced.”

Congressman Hudson’s announcement comes on Religious Freedom Day, the anniversary of the passing of Thomas Jefferson’s Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom in 1786.

Hudson is a member of the Congressional Prayer Caucus.