Fair Treatment of Religious Organizations Act of 2026

Fair Treatment of Religious Organizations Act of 2026

This bill provides that an organization’s religious beliefs or practices concerning marriage, sexuality, or gender identity may not be treated as inconsistent with public law or policy for purposes of determining whether the organization has a charitable purpose and, thus, is exempt from federal income tax.

As background, charitable organizations generally must be organized and operated for one or more tax-exempt purposes (e.g., religious, charitable, scientific, or educational) to be exempt from federal income tax and receive tax-deductible contributions. The Internal Revenue Service’s position, which was upheld by the Supreme Court in Bob Jones University v. United States, is that an organization is not organized or operated for a tax-exempt purpose if the organization is against public policy or illegal.

The bill provides that a religious belief or practice concerning marriage, sexuality or gender identity may not be treated as being inconsistent with public law or policy for purposes of determining if an organization is organized and operated for a tax-exempt purpose. Further, under the bill, a belief need not be compelled by or central to a system of religion to be a religious belief.