The Internal Revenue Service has issued a formal Revenue Ruling (Rev. Rul. 2007-41) to provide guidance to charities on conduct that it will interpret as participation in a political campaign.  Based in part on situations examined after the 2004 election and first issued as a Fact Sheet in 2006, the document is intended to help charities understand what they can and cannot do during an election campaign.

Section 501(c)(3) of the Tax Code prohibits a charity from participating in a political campaign. (See Ready Reference Page: “Charities May Not Participate in Elections.”) But the IRS said it found many charities,...