Santa Ana Church caught promoting Nguyen’s O.C. Board of Education campaign

St. Barbara’s Catholic Church, in Santa Ana, has been caught promoting the political campaign of Ken Nguyen, a Santa Ana Parks and Recreation Commissioner, who is running for the Orange County Board of Education, in Area One, which includes the City of Santa Ana.

Repeated phone calls have been made to the church officials and to the Orange County Catholic Dioscese, but to date the signs are still all over the church’s property.  This is illegal and puts the church at risk of losing their tax exempt status, according to the IRS:

The Prohibition on Political Campaign Intervention

Under the Internal Revenue Code, all section 501(c)(3) organizations are absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for elective public office.  The prohibition applies to all campaigns including campaigns at the federal, state and local level.  Violation of this prohibition may result in denial or revocation of tax-exempt status and the imposition of certain excise taxes.  Those section 501(c)(3) organizations that are private foundations are subject to additional restrictions that are not described in this fact sheet.

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