Treasury Regulations · 26 CFR
§ 56.4911-0. Outline of regulations under section 4911.
Regulation text, no changes From the eCFR, current as of October 15, 2026. The eCFR is an authoritative but unofficial editorial compilation of the Code of Federal Regulations; the official text is the annual CFR on govinfo. Compare it with this section on ecfr.gov (external site) or the official annual CFR on govinfo (external site).
Regulation under 26 U.S.C. § 4911
Cite as 26 CFR § 56.4911-0
At a glance
Read from the text and its source citation. Not part of the regulation.
- Status
- In the current eCFR
- Source
- T.D. 8308, 55 FR 35598, Aug. 31, 1990, unless otherwise noted.
- Issued under
- 26 U.S.C. § 4911
- Length
- 798 words · about 3 min to read
- Cross-references
- cites 2 Code sections and 12 regulations; cited by 0
Immediately following is an outline of the regulations under section 4911 of the Internal Revenue Code relating to an excise tax on electing public charities' excess lobbying expenditures.
(a) In general.
(b) Excess lobbying expenditures.
(c) Nontaxable amounts.
(1) Lobbying nontaxable amount.
(2) Grass roots nontaxable amount.
(d) Examples.
§ 56.4911-2 Lobbying expenditures, direct lobbying communications, and grass roots lobbying communications.(a) Lobbying expenditures.
(1) In general.
(2) Overview of § 56.4911 and the definitions of “direct lobbying communication” and “grass roots lobbying communication”.
(b) Influencing legislation: direct and grass roots lobbying communications defined.
(1) Direct lobbying communication.
(2) Grass roots lobbying communication.
(3) Exceptions to the definition of influencing legislation.
(4) Examples.
(5) Special rule for certain mass media advertisements.
(c) Exceptions to the definitions of direct lobbying communication and grass roots lobbying communication.
(1) Nonpartisan analysis, study, or research exception.
(2) Examinations and discussions of broad social, economic, and similar problems.
(3) Requests for technical advice.
(4) Communications pertaining to “self-defense” by the organization.
(d) Definitions.
(1) Legislation.
(2) Action.
(3) Legislative body.
(4) Administrative bodies.
§ 56.4911-3 Expenditures for direct and/or grass roots lobbying communications.(a) Definition of term “expenditures for”.
(1) In general.
(2) Allocation of mixed purpose expenditures.
(3) Allocation of mixed lobbying.
(b) Examples.
(c) Certain transfers treated as lobbying expenditures.
(1) Transfer earmarked for grass roots purposes.
(2) Transfer earmarked for direct and grass roots lobbying.
(3) Certain transfers to noncharities that lobby.
§ 56.4911-4 Exempt purpose expenditures.(a) Application.
(b) Included expenditures.
(c) Excluded expenditures.
(d) Certain transfers treated as exempt purpose expenditures.
(e) Transfers not exempt purpose expenditures.
(f) Definitions.
(g) Example.
§ 56.4911-5 Communications with members.(a) In general.
(b) Communications (directed only to members) that are not lobbying communications.
(c) Communications (directed only to members) that are direct lobbying communications.
(d) Communications (directed only to members) that are grass roots lobbying communications.
(e) Written communications directed to members and nonmembers.
(1) In general.
(2) Direct lobbying directly encouraged.
(3) Grass roots expenditure if grass roots lobbying directly encouraged.
(4) No direct encouragement of direct lobbying or of grass roots lobbying.
(f) Definitions and special rules.
(1) Member; general rule.
(2) Member; special rule.
(3) Member; affiliated group of organizations.
(4) Member; limited affiliated group of organizations.
(5) Subscriber.
(6) Directly encourages.
(7) Percentages of total distribution.
(8) Reasonable allocation rule.
§ 56.4911-6 Records of lobbying and grass roots expenditures.(a) Records of lobbying expenditures.
(b) Records of grass roots expenditures.
§ 56.4911-7 Affiliated group of organizations.(a) Affiliation between two organizations.
(1) In general.
(2) Organizations not described in section 501(c)(3).
(3) Action on legislative issues.
(b) Interlocking governing boards.
(1) In general.
(2) Majority or quorum.
(3) Votes required under governing instrument or local law.
(4) Representatives constituting less than 15% of governing board.
(5) Representatives.
(c) Governing instrument.
(d) Three or more organizations affiliated.
(1) Two controlled organizations affiliated.
(2) Chain rule.
(e) Affiliated group of organizations.
(1) Defined.
(2) Multiple membership.
(3) Taxable year of affiliated group.
(4) Electing member organization.
(5) Election of member's year as group's taxable year.
(f) Examples.
§ 56.4911-8 Excess lobbying expenditures of affiliated group.(a) Application.
(b) Affiliated group treated as one organization.
(c) Tax imposed on excess lobbying expenditures of affiliated group.
(d) Liability for tax.
(1) Electing organizations.
(2) Tax based on excess lobbying expenditures.
(3) Tax based on excess grass roots expenditures.
(4) Tax based on exempt purpose expenditures.
(5) Taxable year for which liable.
(6) Organization a member of more than one affiliated group.
(e) Former member organizations.
§ 56.4911-9 Application of section 501(h) to affiliated groups of organizations.(a) Scope.
(b) Determination required.
(c) Member organizations that are not electing organizations.
(d) Filing of information relating to affiliated group of organizations.
(1) Scope.
(2) In general.
(3) Additional information required.
(4) Information required of electing member organization.
(e) Example.
(f) Cross reference.
§ 56.4911-10 Members of a limited affiliated group of organizations.(a) Scope.
(b) Members of limited affiliated group.
(c) Controlling and controlled organizations.
(d) Expenditures of controlling organization.
(1) Scope.
(2) Expenditures for direct lobbying.
(3) Grass roots expenditures.
(4) Exempt purpose expenditures.
(e) Expenditures of controlled member.
(f) Reports of members of limited affiliated groups.
(1) Controlling member organization's additional information on annual return.
(2) Reports of controlling members to other members.
(3) Reports of controlled member organizations.
(g) National legislative issues.
(h) Examples.
§ 56.6001-1 Notice or regulations requiring records, statements, and special returns.(a) In general.
(b) Cross references.
§ 56.6011-1 General requirement of return, statement, or list.Cross-references
Computed from the citations in the text of 26 CFR.
Code sections it cites
- § 4911 Tax on excess expenditures to influence legislation
- § 501 Exemption from tax on corporations, certain trusts, etc.
Regulations it cites
- § 56.4911-1 Tax on excess lobbying expenditures.
- § 56.4911-2 Lobbying expenditures, direct lobbying communications, and grass roots lobbying communications.
- § 56.4911-3 Expenditures for direct and/or grass roots lobbying communications.
- § 56.4911-4 Exempt purpose expenditures.
- § 56.4911-5 Communications with members.
- § 56.4911-6 Records of lobbying and grass roots expenditures.
- § 56.4911-7 Affiliated group of organizations.
- § 56.4911-8 Excess lobbying expenditures of affiliated group.
- § 56.4911-9 Application of section 501(h) to affiliated groups of organizations.
- § 56.4911-10 Members of a limited affiliated group of organizations.
- § 56.6001-1 Notice or regulations requiring records, statements, and special returns.
- § 56.6011-1 General requirement of return, statement, or list.
Where it sits in 26 CFR
- Subchapter D Miscellaneous excise taxes
- Part 56 Public charity excise taxes
Nearby sections
- § 56.4911-0 Outline of regulations under section 4911.
- § 56.4911-1 Tax on excess lobbying expenditures.
- § 56.4911-2 Lobbying expenditures, direct lobbying communications, and grass roots lobbying communications.
- § 56.4911-3 Expenditures for direct and/or grass roots lobbying communications.
- § 56.4911-4 Exempt purpose expenditures.