Tax Exempt Status of Churches

Am I the only one who is sick of reading every day about the role the Catholic Bishops are playing in the debate about healthcare? I mean they, virtually by themselves, killed a House compromise on abortion funding and dictated the final version of the bill that was passed. They are trying to do the same thing in the Senate.

The moron (oops...I mean mormon) church was the single biggest contributor to the passage of Prop. 8 in California last year. The catholic church has been promoting anti-abortion legislation ever since the Roe v Wade decision in 1974. Both institutions are too big and protected to be singled out by the IRS for revocation of their privileged status. So let´s not even try to single them out. Let´s just recognize that the idea of special treatment for all religious institutions is no longer appropriate, and end it.

There is a tendency, I think, to believe the tax exempt status should be ended for the churches which take positions we oppose, and to look the other way for those that are active in causes we espouse. But I think we need to be consistent and make all churches subject to taxes.

Actually, there would most likely spring up instantly a new field of creative religious accounting that would allow churches to continue to avoid paying taxes, but we at least need to get rid of the notion that religious institutions are recognized as somehow special. And once the Federal Government has said that churches are no longer special, it opens the door for local governments to start taxing church property. It is a matter of fairness, after all.

And it would take the government out of questions like "is Scientology really a religion?" The government could take the very proper position of "who gives a good god damn?"

I suppose a corollary effect would be that individuals would no longer receive a tax deduction for money they give to their churches. Seems reasonable to me.

According to a website called Revoke LDS Church 501'(c)(3) Status:"

Section 501(c)(3) of US Code Title 26, which governs tax-exempt organizations, reads (emphasis added):

(3) Corporations, and any community chest, fund, or foundation, organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, testing for public safety, literary, or educational purposes, or to foster national or international amateur sports competition (but only if no part of its activities involve the provision of athletic facilities or equipment), or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals, no part of the net earnings of which inures to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual, no substantial part of the activities of which is carrying on propaganda, or otherwise attempting, to influence legislation (except as otherwise provided in subsection (h)), and which does not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements), any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.

(The “otherwise provided” clause does not apply, as the LDS Church, being a church, is a disqualified entity as described in subsection (h).)

If this is the correct wording of the statute, it seems pretty clear cut to me that the Catholic and Mormon churches are violating the law with impunity, and have been for years. It pains me to suggest that all churches need to suffer because of a couple of bad apples....but it doesn´t pain me very much.