Part III of New York Times investigative report turns up more on the preferences given to church-based enterprise by courts and legislatures.
The sixth most e-mailed story in today's Times (behind Barbara Streisand and elephants run amok) is the continuing investigative report on church enterprises by Diana B. Henriques. Today's story is on property tax exemption and tax-exempt bond financing.
The lead is about a luxury retirement community in South Bend, Indiana operated by the Brothers of Holy Cross, which the brothers content should be a tax exempt ministry project. The county board of assessments, who are themselves mostly Catholic, do not agree.
What many people are not aware of is that property tax exemption is an individual decision of every government entity that collects the tax. There is no universal rule, though as the article suggests the exemption policy can be set by state law. Because of the proliferation of charities in large cities, they are frequently trying to find ways to get charity property back on the tax roles, either directly or through payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs). But in smaller and suburban communities, exemptions can be relatively easy to obtain.
So there is a case of a biblical theme park in Florida that the county wanted to tax, but Gov. Jeb Bush pushed through a law establishing that it was a exempt property used for a religious purpose.
The article reports on churches that have set up property-tax-exempt fitness centers in Minnesota, broadcasting towers in Washington State, and housing for teachers in Alaska.
And there is the issue of tax-exempt bonds, which are now frequently used to benefit churches with only a slight nod to general public benefit. Court cases have cleared the way, finding that if the facility provides education, for instance, it doesn't matter if the institution has a religious connection. Originally the standard did involve some judgment about whether the facility was pervasively religious, but that standard has eroded to the point that governments now cooperate in getting tax-exempt financing even for seminaries.
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