Should Churches Have To Pay Taxes?

[Placebo]

Poll question: Should Churches Have To Pay Taxes?

I never understood why they were tax exempt. :shrug: Especially now that they've become so intertwined in the political process.

[MercutioATC]

1. Yes, but they already do on most things.

[trotsky]

6. Not property.

And many churches - the Catholic Church especially - have buildings that are occupying prime real estate that would otherwise contribute significantly to the local coffers.

[MercutioATC]

13. True.

And yes, I'd like to see that changed.

[thoughtanarchist]

2. any church that gets into politics should pay just like the other 527s n/t

[kedrys]

3. You wanna tell me how to live my life, you gots to pay. Simple.

And I reserve the right to totally ignore everything you say.

--spectacularly lapsed catholic

[AllyCat]

4. I voted no, but...

...if they are going to continue hawking for candidates, then they are no longer religious organizations and should have to pay taxes. If we're not going to have separation of church and state, then forget the tax exempt status.

[JohnKleeb]

5. I agree witht what you're saying

[ISUGRADIA]

7. YES This was originally intended for the little church on the corner

not like today where suburban mega churches on 10 acres with millions $ pay nothing. Or the TBN Crouchs (sp?) who have a multi million dollar empire.

[Mabeline]

9. While I agree that those suburban

mega Churches that take in millions annually should pay taxes, there are still many, many small Churches that I personally know and they only take in a matter of a couple of hunderd dollars a month (ministers are not paid) and that is for lights, property tax (if needed), building materials for upkeep and things like supplies for the rest rooms.

[JohnKleeb]

11. I like what you're saying

The really big churches like the one Falwell has here in Virginia should be but more smaller ones should not. Those megachurches really are nonsense to me.

[solinvictus]

12. Megachurches..

There's one here in a Birmingham suburb that has a multi-million dollar exercise facility. They should be taxed.

[proud2BlibKansan]

10. And those mega churches

are usually paid for by the time they are built. That tax exempt thing leads to no mortgages for these churches. Just think how far that money could go to feed the hungry or clothe the cold - you know those charitable things these mega church goers used to do with their money? Makes me ill the way they build these huge churches nowadays.

[NightTrain]

8. Abso-fucking-lutely!

To quote George Carlin:

"Since the church insists on meddling in politics...TAX THOSE MOTHERFUCKERS!!!"

[fortyfeetunder]

19. Night Train -- Amen to that!

Since the fundies have been trying to legislate what goes in our knickers, I agree -- they need to "pay to play"!

[jeff30997]

24. NightTrain for Pope !

:yourock: :headbang::headbang::yourock:

[FREEDOMRULES3]

14. i think

we should invoke the "golden calf " rule on them . they are big business plain and simple.

[Lone_Wolf_Moderate]

15. As a general rule, I say no. Certainly not on the property, or the

charitable gifts. The exception I make is when churches use tax dollars to engage in deliberate partisan activities. It's a tough call sometimes, but I think we can strive for balance.

[JohnKleeb]

16. yes, I agree with that as well

[Cadence]

17. Absofuckinlutely!

[Kathy in Cambridge]

21. Took the word right out of my mouth

ESPECIALLY since they've been preaching politics from the pulpit. They should fork over the cash.

[LiberalSoutherner]

18. I voted no,

but thats because I do believe in separation of religion and government. I also think that a way should be found that ALL excess profits made by a church be distributed among those that are truly needy. Any money they choose to keep to themselves, like building a gym for their members or a 10mil building, should be taxed.

[Skittles]

20. absolutely

nt

[mitchum]

22. Let them put their money where there sanctimonious mouths are!

I AM SICK OF THESE PULPIT-DWELLING WELFARE QUEENS
These grifters should have always been taxed.

[donheld]

27. Thank you

i couldn't say it better.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

23. Have you ever been involved in the administration of a church?

I have. I was on the vestry (governing board) of a small Episcopal church in Portland for three years.

We were on a very tight budget, but we managed to do a lot, like offering two meals per week to the homeless, giving free space to twelve-step groups and to a socialization program for former mental patients, and resettling refugees.

On top of that, we already paid an internal "tax" of sorts called Diocesan Program Assessment, which was a fixed percentage of our parish income and which was paid up the hierarchical ladder to run the diocese (the administrative dictrict) and farther up to the national church.

It was all we could do to keep that decrepit 70-year-old building running, pay the priest, the secretary, the janitor, and the music director, and buy supplies. We couldn't afford to hire someone to do our repair work, so either the priest or groups of volunteers did it.

There are some myths floating around, such as the myth that clergy don't pay income tax. They do. They may even pay estimated tax, like self-employed people, if the church doesn't pay into Social Security. Also, outside of the free-lance megachurches, the clergy are paid a fixed salary and are not allowed to dip into the offering plate as they please.

That being said, I do believe that churches that advocate for specific candidates or run profit-making businesses should have their tax exemption revoked. To be fair, this should hold equally true for megachurches that let Republican governors preach (as in Minnesota) or African-American churches that let Democratic candidates preach (as has happened over the years).

Churches have the right to preach against abortion or gay rights, if that's their thing, but saying that members must vote to support these teachings or must vote for a specific candidate is crossing the line.

I liked the way one former priest preached about elections, telling us to look carefully at the candidates and issues and make sure that we were really following our deepest beliefs instead of being seduced by advertising hype.

[davsand]

25. Churches CAN be taxed in certain circumstances.

That IRS designation (federal taxes) can be revoked, and property tax exemptions (local taxes) can be revoked as well. A lot depends on how the property is used and on how the church conducts itself.

Several of you have mentioned the whole political thing as a reason for federal taxation to be revoked. There are provisions in the IRS tax code for that to happen. They are not exercised very often.

Property taxes ARE placed on hospitals, and it does happen for a variety of reasons. We had one church locally that opened and ran a savings and loan out of the lobby. THAT was an issue.

We've had churches that leased space out to private individuals (Yep, they rented apartments out in the church building) and we've seen churches that ran for-profit businesses out of their buildings. All those things have been an issue for property tax exemption.

I figure churches are on a budget, and they do serve a purpose for our communities. I see a lot of good stuff they do, and I am not terribly opposed to locally based church programs being kept in check by locally based oversite. I do think that Federal Tax exemptions, however, are wrong.

Just my opinion.


Laura

[AZCat]

26. The Chinese struggled with this also

By the 9th century Buddhism had grown very influential in China. However monks were exempt from paying taxes and the emperor Wuzong (840-846) resented this. There was also a shortage of copper in China to make coins. The Buddhist monks were blamed because they used so much copper to make bronze statues, bells and chimes. In 845 Wuzong ordered that monasteries should hand over their land and property like iron and bronze artefacts. All monks under the age of 40 were ordered to return to civilian life. Many temples were destroyed. The order was rescinded in 846 but it was a severe blow to Buddhism in China.

If you go to the link, scroll down to the Tang Dynasty to see this (roughly half-way).