The agency's agreement in a court filing formally reverses a decades-old provision of the tax code, but the motion would need to be approved by a judge.

In a joint court filing intended to end an ongoing case against the IRS, the tax collection agency and the National Religious Broadcasters Association — a Evangelical media consortium — and other plaintiffs have asked a federal court in Texas to stop the government from enforcing the Johnson Amendment against the plaintiffs.

Comparing it to a family discussion, the Internal Revenue Service agreed on Monday that pastors and other religious leaders can endorse political candidates to their congregation without threatening