By Staff
ALEXNDRIA, La. (LBM) – The Louisiana Baptist Convention is sending out letters to explain a change by the Internal Revenue Service in how it qualifies group exemptions for churches.
Revenue Procedure 2026-8, issued by the IRS in January, ended a freeze that had been in place since 2026 that prohibited the granting of new group exemptions. The new IRS rule also modified what churches must do to be part of an umbrella Group Exemption like the one granted to the Louisiana Baptist Convention.
Now Louisiana Baptist congregations must complete a form that declares their desire to participate in the LBC Group Exemption, instead of relying on the IRS to presume their participation by way of affiliation with the LBC.
Dale Lingenfelter, chief financial officer and associate executive director for Louisiana Baptists, told the Baptist Message that completing and signing the form “will not affect the autonomy of the local church.” He also said that a church can choose not to participate and instead seek its own letter of exemption from the IRS.
Lingenfelter also shared that churches must complete and sign the form (whether the answer is “yes” or “no”) and return it to the LBC Executive Board in Alexandria via email (GroupExemption@LBC.org) or postal mail (P.O. Box 311, Alexandria, LA 71309) no later than November 30.
Click on the links below to access:
— Questions and Answers about the Group Exemption Initiative
— Sample Letter to Churches
— Official Form to declare “yes” or “no” to participation
