05-13-2011, 05:01 PM
So your plan is to tax churches, but not other not-for profit organizations? How exactly would you separate them?
In addition to worship on Sunday, in our sanctuary over the past week the following has taken place:
Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, officers of our local youth soccer club meeting, cancer walk-a-thon meeting, violin lessons, free yoga class open to the public, Mommy and me class open to the public (not religious,) ESL classes that are free to participants and funded by a local agency, high school orchestra chamber orchestra recital, and a wilderness first aid course taught by the Red Cross. Our church does not expect any benefit from these activities, nor do we influence the participants. This is one of the ways we serve the public, by subsidizing these types of activities.
None of these activities has another good place to meet in our small town, the scout troops in particular have a tough time finding spaces large enough for the group that are free, so we subsidize them by letting them use our space for free.
What of that are you going to tax? Just the worship, or everything?
If you tax everything, you've now crossed into taxing not for profits that are not religious in nature.
In addition to worship on Sunday, in our sanctuary over the past week the following has taken place:
Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, officers of our local youth soccer club meeting, cancer walk-a-thon meeting, violin lessons, free yoga class open to the public, Mommy and me class open to the public (not religious,) ESL classes that are free to participants and funded by a local agency, high school orchestra chamber orchestra recital, and a wilderness first aid course taught by the Red Cross. Our church does not expect any benefit from these activities, nor do we influence the participants. This is one of the ways we serve the public, by subsidizing these types of activities.
None of these activities has another good place to meet in our small town, the scout troops in particular have a tough time finding spaces large enough for the group that are free, so we subsidize them by letting them use our space for free.
What of that are you going to tax? Just the worship, or everything?
If you tax everything, you've now crossed into taxing not for profits that are not religious in nature.