But District Judge Cam Barker ruled that he did not have the authority to approve the proposed consent judgement. He cited federal laws that prevent judges from blocking taxation that hasn’t yet occurred; plaintiffs typically must pay the taxes they want to challenge, and then sue for a refund.
Barker, a Trump appointee who previously served as Texas’ deputy solicitor general, rejected the argument that these restrictions did not apply because both sides had agreed to the judgement.
Barker noted that there are other avenues to challenge this issue, like by suing after the taxes are collected or disputing the loss of a tax-exempt status caused by a violation of the Johnson Amendment. But this was not the proper venue, no matter how much both sides wanted it to be, he wrote.
Americans United for Separation of Church and State, an advocacy group that attempted to intervene in the case, lauded Tuesday’s ruling.
“We’re glad that the Johnson Amendment will remain a strong bulwark to stop religious extremists from exploiting houses of worship,” said Rachel Laser, the group’s president. “The proposed settlement agreement to exempt only houses of worship and not secular nonprofits would have been unfair and a violation of church-state separation.”
Even before the court could approve the judgment, some conservative Christian pastors began touting the victory and preparing to amp up their political rhetoric. Others, like the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said they would continue steering clear of candidate endorsements from the pulpit, no matter the outcome.
德克萨斯州法官驳回让教会发表政治支持的请求
美国联邦法官周二在泰勒市驳回了一起诉讼。该诉讼意在允许教会为政治候选人背书，而不会因此丧失其免税资格，从而对特朗普政府以及其他一直努力废除这项数十年前就存在的法律、阻止非营利组织支持政治办公室候选人的保守派人士造成打击。
多家德克萨斯州教会以及全国性的基督教组织提起了该诉讼，挑战被广泛称为“约翰逊修正案”的法律。他们辩称，自己的宗教信念迫使他们就包括选举政治在内的生活各个方面与会众发声。原告在其起诉美国国税局（IRS）的诉状中认为，为了维持免税资格而禁止在讲坛上进行拉票活动，侵犯了他们的第一修正案权利。
在拜登政府的最后几天，司法部（Department of Justice）试图驳回该案。特朗普政府不仅使该案得以恢复审理，还站到了原告一边。双方请求法官批准一项和解安排：由IRS同意不对这些教会执行约翰逊修正案。
这本将成为一项具有里程碑意义的裁决，赋予牧师更积极地通过教会推动政治的权力，并削弱自1954年以来一直是美国税法常设要求的基础。该法律以时任德克萨斯州参议员林登·约翰逊的名字命名，他最初提出了该法。
But District Judge Cam Barker ruled that he did not have the authority to approve the proposed consent judgement. He cited federal laws that prevent judges from blocking taxation that hasn’t yet occurred; plaintiffs typically must pay the taxes they want to challenge, and then sue for a refund.
Barker, a Trump appointee who previously served as Texas’ deputy solicitor general, rejected the argument that these restrictions did not apply because both sides had agreed to the judgement.
“Relief enjoining the Johnson Amendment’s enforcement or declaring that it does not apply to specific conduct would thus directly bear on the amount of tax that could be collected,” Barker wrote. “Put differently, if the plaintiffs here gave up their § 501©(3) tax-exempt status, none of the harms they allege could occur.”
Barker noted that there are other avenues to challenge this issue, like by suing after the taxes are collected or disputing the loss of a tax-exempt status caused by a violation of the Johnson Amendment. But this was not the proper venue, no matter how much both sides wanted it to be, he wrote.
Americans United for Separation of Church and State, an advocacy group that attempted to intervene in the case, lauded Tuesday’s ruling.
“We’re glad that the Johnson Amendment will remain a strong bulwark to stop religious extremists from exploiting houses of worship,” said Rachel Laser, the group’s president. “The proposed settlement agreement to exempt only houses of worship and not secular nonprofits would have been unfair and a violation of church-state separation.”
Even before the court could approve the judgment, some conservative Christian pastors began touting the victory and preparing to amp up their political rhetoric. Others, like the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said they would continue steering clear of candidate endorsements from the pulpit, no matter the outcome.
在民主党和共和党政府中，对约翰逊修正案的执行长期都比较宽松。德克萨斯论坛报（The Texas Tribune）和ProPublica在两年期间至少发现了20个教会违反该法的例子，这个数量超过了IRS在过去十年里调查的案件数。
该报道最初由 The Texas Tribune 发布，并通过与美联社（The Associated Press）的合作关系进行分发。