Church Group Will Rename Voter’s Guide : Politics: Under threat of complaint to the IRS, members of Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa will distribute the publication as the ‘Concerned Parents of Orange County.’

SANTA ANA —  Hoping to avoid legal action that could threaten their church’s tax-exempt status, members of Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa have decided to rename the voter’s guide they plan to publish before the Nov. 8 election.

David Hocking, a pastor at the church, said Thursday that the group will distribute the guide under the name “Concerned Parents of Orange County” to avoid charges that the church itself is engaging in political action, which is prohibited by Internal Revenue Service rules.

The guide was originally called the “Calvary Chapel Voter’s Guide,” but by weakening its connection to the church, Hocking hopes to avoid criticism that a religious institution is inappropriately venturing into the political arena.

“The title will reflect what it is. Our church isn’t exactly involved in it. It’s a group of parents and volunteers,” Hocking said.

“The word church needs to be defined,” he added. “If you mean ‘the church’ as an organization or staff, no, none of that was involved. If you mean ‘church’ as people, yes, there were people from the church putting (the guide) together.”

The name change was prompted by a complaint from John Duran, a West Hollywood civil rights attorney who, in a letter to the church Tuesday, threatened to file a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service if the church published its guide as planned.

Duran said Thursday that by taking its name off the guide, the church would solve the legal problem and there would be no need to report the matter to the IRS.

Duran filed a similar complaint against the Traditional Values Coalition, another tax-exempt, nonprofit group, five years ago. That complaint is still pending, he said.

“The issue is whether a tax-exempt organization is using any of its resources for political activity,” Duran said. “If a group of individuals who all just happen to belong to that church use their own labor and resources to put it out, then it’s OK.”

In an unprecedented foray into local politics, Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa--one of the largest churches in the nation--mailed surveys last month with pointed, yes-or-no questions on controversial moral issues to candidates for city council, school board, special district and county positions.

Though several Christian political groups have published similar voter’s guides for years, Calvary Chapel was the first church in Orange County to do so.

Under the rules governing their tax-exempt status, churches are not allowed to endorse candidates or political positions. Though the voter’s guide is intended to be purely informational, some candidates and political consultants complained that the surveys made the church’s position clear, providing tacit endorsements to candidates who agreed.

Hocking said last month that the guide would be distributed to 50,000 Orange County residents through local churches. But on Thursday the pastor said that publicity about the surveys has brought the church unwanted attention and criticism from the community, jeopardizing publication of the guide.

Although about 250 local candidates have responded to the survey, Hocking said Thursday that the project has spun out of control and that church members are now unsure whether they will be able to finish the guide in time for distribution.

Scores of people have called the church wondering about its position on state and national candidates and issues--despite the fact that the guide deals exclusively with local races, Hocking said. Meanwhile, candidates who agree with the church’s stance have asked for money, he added.

“We are just worn out with it,” Hocking said Thursday. “The church is very burdened. The church is very overloaded with people trying to make this more than it really is. . . . Frankly, I don’t think we’re ever going to do it again. It’s too much. We just can’t handle it--and that’s sad.”