HCR 9: Adopt the Leland Muhlenberg Resolution

As Introduced

136th General Assembly Regular Session 2025-2026

H. C. R. No. 9

Representatives Click, Newman

A C O N C U R R E N T R E S O L U T I O N

To urge the federal government to repeal the Johnson 1
Amendment and to name this resolution the Leland 2
Muhlenberg Resolution. 3

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF OHIO (THE SENATE CONCURRING):

WHEREAS, The First Amendment to the Constitution of the 4
United States guarantees that Congress shall make no laws 5
respecting the establishment of religion, or prohibiting the 6
free exercise thereof; and 7
WHEREAS, The United States Congress quickly adopted an 8
unvetted amendment in the Senate commonly known as the "Johnson 9
Amendment" in 1954; and 10
WHEREAS, This Senate amendment was targeted at nonprofit 11
organizations other than churches that were the political rivals 12
of Senator Lyndon B. Johnson; and 13
WHEREAS, Senator Johnson never intended to infringe on the 14
free speech of churches, synagogues, mosques, or other religious 15
organizations; and 16
WHEREAS, George W. Ranck documented the plight of pastors 17
and churches who fled from Virginia to Tennessee via Daniel 18
Boone's Wilderness Trail in search of religious freedom in "The 19
Travelling Church"; and 20

H. C. R. No. 9 Page 2 As Introduced

WHEREAS, Churches are tax immune in order to protect the 21
freedom of speech and the freedom of religion; and 22
WHEREAS, Many churches have chosen to register as 501(c)(3) 23
organizations for convenience; and 24
WHEREAS, The application of the Johnson Amendment to 25
churches violates the Constitution of the United States; and 26
WHEREAS, The ability to tax religious speech is the power 27
to regulate speech and religion, thereby infringing on the First 28
Amendment; and 29
WHEREAS, That thousands of pastors have self-reported 30
violations of the Johnson Amendment to the Internal Revenue 31
Service (IRS) without consequence validates the constitutional 32
fragility of the amendment; and 33
WHEREAS, The Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. 34
inaugurated the civil rights movement in the basement of the 35
Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama; and 36
WHEREAS, The presence of this unconstitutional language in 37
the United States Code enables opponents of the church to 38
threaten and intimidate religious bodies who chose to speak on 39
contemporary issues; and 40
WHEREAS, Lengthy and costly litigation may ensue, 41
disenfranchising churches and other religious bodies of either 42
their free speech or their scarce financial resources; and 43
WHEREAS, This unconstitutional prohibition sends a mixed 44
message to society on the role of religion in advocating for 45
good governance; and 46
WHEREAS, The church was instrumental in guiding the 47
conversations that lead to founding documents such as the 48
Mayflower Compact, the Declaration of Independence, the 49
Constitution of the United States, and the Bill of Rights; and 50

H. C. R. No. 9 As Introduced

WHEREAS, A study by Donald S. Lutz demonstrates that the 51
Scriptures were the most commonly referenced documents by the 52
founding fathers followed by the writings of other Christian men 53
such as Montesquieu, Blackstone, and Locke; and 54
WHEREAS, Benjamin Franklin called for prayer at the 55
Constitutional Convention citing no less than fourteen passages 56
of Scripture extemporaneously noting that the longer he has 57
lived the more convincing proofs he sees that God intervenes in 58
the affairs of men; and 59
WHEREAS, Thomas Paine appealed to Scripture in the pamphlet 60
"Common Sense," which roused the nation to the call for 61
independence; and 62
WHEREAS, Reverend Jacob Duche led the first Congress in 63
such a powerful prayer and Scripture reading from Psalm 35 that 64
John Adams was compelled to write to his wife, Abigail, "I never 65
saw a greater Effect upon an Audience. It seemed as if Heaven 66
had ordained that Psalm to be read on that Morning."; and 67
WHEREAS, The United States Congress has appointed chaplains 68
for the House of Representatives and Senate from the very first 69
Congress beginning in 1789; and 70
WHEREAS, George Washington stated in his farewell address 71
that religion and morality were indispensable supports of 72
patriotism and that in vain would a man claim the tribute of 73
patriotism who would seek to subvert them; and 74
WHEREAS, Thomas Jefferson responded to the fears of the 75
Danbury Baptist Association that government might regulate their 76
speech, stating that, "religion is a matter which lies solely 77
between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for 78
his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of 79
government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate 80
with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people 81

H. C. R. No. 9 Page 4 As Introduced

which declared that their legislature should 'make no law 82
respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free 83
exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between 84
Church & State"; and 85
WHEREAS, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin 86
Franklin proposed a depiction of Moses leading the children of 87
Israel across the Red Sea as the seal of the United States of 88
America; and 89
WHEREAS, Our national motto was first found in the fourth 90
stanza of the Battle of Fort McHenry by Francis Scott Key and is 91
now nationally recognized as our National Anthem; and 92
WHEREAS, Our currency bears the motto "In God We Trust"; 93
and 94
WHEREAS, The hymn, "God of our Fathers," was selected as 95
our National Hymn on the 100th Anniversary of the United States 96
of America; and 97
WHEREAS, Abraham Lincoln appealed to the Scriptures in his 98
econd inaugural address; and 99
WHEREAS, The Statue of John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg stands 100
in the United States Capitol demonstrating the power of the 101
pulpit in the fight against tyranny and for freedom; and 102
WHEREAS, Pastor John Leland persuaded James Madison to 103
advocate for a Bill of Rights; and 104
WHEREAS, Pastor Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg was persuaded 105
to join his brother after watching churches suffer tyranny and 106
abuse; and 107
WHEREAS, Both Pastor Muhlenberg and his brother were 108
elected to the first Congress; and 109
WHEREAS, Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg was chosen as the 110

H. C. R. No. 9 Page 5

As Introduced

first Speaker of the House; and 111
WHEREAS, Pastor and Speaker Frederick Muhlenberg's 112
signature adorns the Bill of Rights; and 113
WHEREAS, The motto of the State of Ohio is, "With God, All 114
Things Are Possible"; and 115
WHEREAS, The preamble to the Ohio Constitution states "We, 116
the people of the State of Ohio, grateful to Almighty God for 117
our freedom, to secure its blessings and promote our common 118
welfare,"; and 119
WHEREAS, Article I, Section 7 of the Ohio Constitution 120
states that "no preference shall be given, by law, to any 121
religious society; nor shall any interference with the rights of 122
conscience be permitted."; and 123
WHEREAS, The Declaration of Independence states that we are 124
endowed with our rights not by government but by our Creator; 125
and 126
WHEREAS, The Declaration of Independence defines the 127
purpose of government, stating, "That to secure these rights, 128
Governments are instituted among Men,"; and 129
WHEREAS, The Bill of Rights prohibits the language found in 130
the Johnson Amendment, which prohibits the free exercise of 131
religion by establishing what churches may and may not do; now 132
therefore be it 133
RESOLVED, That we, the members of the 136th General 134
Assembly of the State of Ohio, urge President Donald J. Trump, 135
Vice-President and Senate President J.D. Vance, Senate Majority 136
Leader John Thune, Speaker of the House of Representatives 137
Michael Johnson, and the United States Congress to repeal the 138
Johnson Amendment, thus conforming the United States Code to the 139
First Amendment of the Bill of Rights amended into the United 140

H. C. R. No. 9 As Introduced

States Constitution on December 15, 1791; and be it further 141
RESOLVED, That this resolution shall be named the Leland 142
Muhlenberg Resolution after the historic pastors without whom 143
this nation would not have secured a place in history as the 144
world leaders in freedom and liberty; and be it further 145
RESOLVED, That the Clerk of the House of Representatives 146
transmit duly authenticated copies of this resolution to the 147
President of the United States, President Pro Tempore and 148
Secretary of the United States Senate, the Speaker and Clerk of 149
the United States House of Representatives, the members of the 150
Ohio Congressional delegation, and the news media of Ohio. 151