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S. 264 115th Congress Senate

The Free Speech Fairness Act

Official title: A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow charitable organizations to make statements relating to political campaigns if such statements are m… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow charitable organizations to make statements relating to political campaigns if such statements are made in ordinary course of carrying out its tax exempt purpose.

Introduced: March 9, 2017 Introduced by: James Lankford Republican · Oklahoma See on congress.gov
Taxation Elections, voting, political campaign regulationPublic participation and lobbyingSocial work, volunteer service, charitable organizationsTax-exempt organizations
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This bill died when the 115th Congress ended
It never became law before the 115th Congress (2017–2018) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Feb 1, 2017
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Feb 1, 2017
Introduced in Senate
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 Latest action February 1, 2017

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Free Speech Fairness Act

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit a tax-exempt organization to make certain statements related to a political campaign without losing its tax-exempt status. An organization may not lose its tax-exempt status under section 501(c)(3) or be deemed to have participated in, or intervened in any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office, solely because of the content of any statement that: (1) is made in the ordinary course of the organization's regular and customary activities in carrying out its exempt purpose, and (2) results in the organization incurring not more than de minimis incremental expenses.

 Related & companion bills 3
  • HR 781 Identical bill Free Speech Fairness Act
  • HR 88 Shiloh National Military Park Boundary Adjustment and Parker's Crossroads Battlefield Designation Act
  • HR 1 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 1
 Cosponsors 2
All 2 Republican 2
R
Cruz, Ted
Texas · Mar 9, 2017
 R
Paul, Rand
Kentucky · Feb 1, 2017
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). S. 264: The Free Speech Fairness Act. 115th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/115-S-264/
MLA
"S. 264: The Free Speech Fairness Act." 115th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/115-S-264/.
Bluebook (legal)
S. 264, 115th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/115-S-264/.
Markdown link
[S. 264: The Free Speech Fairness Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/115-S-264/)
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