Technical Assistance Question of the Week

Q: We are a 501(c)(3) working on a candidate questionnaire for an upcoming local election. We gave a deadline for responses, but one of the candidates asked for an extension. Can we grant the extension?

A: Probably not. As a 501(c)(3) organization, you are prohibited from intervening in any political campaign for or against a candidate for public office. Your group may, however, help educate voters about candidates on a strictly nonpartisan basis, such as with your candidate questionnaire. Under both federal tax law and federal election law, you must treat all candidates equally when creating a candidate questionnaire – which means every candidate must be given the same questions, the same format limitations (such as word limits), and the same response deadline. Allowing one candidate more time than the rest were given may be seen as helping that candidate and, therefore, a violation of the rules.