26 U.S.C. § 271 — Debts owed by political parties, etc.

(a) General rule. A taxpayer — other than a bank, as section 581 defines it — cannot deduct a debt as a bad debt under section 166, or as a worthless security under section 165(g), if the debt is owed by a "political party." (b) Definitions. (1) "Political party" means: (A) a political party; (B) a national, State, or local committee of a political party; or (C) any committee, association, or organization that accepts contributions or makes expenditures to influence the election of presidential or vice-presidential electors, or of anyone whose name is put forward for a federal, State, or local elected office, whether or not they win. (2) "Contributions" includes a gift, subscription, loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of value, and any contract, promise, or agreement to contribute — whether or not it's legally enforceable. (3) "Expenditures" includes a payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of money or anything of value, and any contract, promise, or agreement to spend — whether or not it's legally enforceable. (c) Exception. For a taxpayer using the accrual method of accounting, subsection (a) does not block the deduction for a receivable that accrued from a genuine sale of goods or services in the ordinary course of business, if: (1) in the year the receivable accrued, more than 30 percent of all the receivables that accrued in the taxpayer's ordinary business came from political parties, and (2) the taxpayer made real, ongoing efforts to collect the debt.