Question: What would it take to get the BORG'S tax exempt status REVOKED? (page 2)

EndofMysteries

All other churches actually give to the poor though and at least to their own members. WT does NONE of that. It's own members must go to other churches for food, etc.

Saintbertholdt

WHAT WOULD IT TAKE TO GET THE GOVERNMENT TO REVOKE THEIR TAX EXEMPT STATUS? Public pressure? Media blitz exposing their finances. Political pressure? What?

The separation of church and state would prevent that. The US supreme courts formal neutrality test would not allow for tax exemption on churches to be lifted. I think the argument should not be one of losing tax exemption, but the argument should be for full public disclosure regarding financial matters for all churches. That is still a neutral stance and the only thing the state would be doing is leveling the playing field for its citizenry by giving access to information.

JeffT

1) The only case law he cites involves a university not the church itself.

2) The issue he's writing about (gay marriage) may mean that church officiants must sign marriage certificates for everybody or nobody. They can't pick and choose who they sign for. However, the church can refuse to recognize gay marriages if they want to and the government can not, under the Constitution, tell them otherwise.

The constitution is clear that the government can not dictate what a church does within its walls, nor can it favor one church over another. In order to revoke the tax exempt status of the WTBS the IRS would have to revoke that status for all churches. In order to do that it probably would have to revoke it for all non-profits, otherwise its treated churches differently, which it can't do. See the 14th Amendment.

DesirousOfChange

The threat in the USA is not the IRS, it is the legal system and the attorneys that can smell blood (money) since the recent multi-million dollar verdicts against the WTS.

Doc

rebel8

This is one of those topics that keeps getting rehashed in this forum.

The requirement to do charitable works is a complete myth.

IRS tax codes are available online. You can read what organizations must do to obtain and retain tax exempt status, but you can't have it revoked for one organization unless that organization did something to break that code (like demonstrating it was no longer eligible).

Fisherman

Brooklyn properties maxed out in value. The only thing to do was to sell. An imminent eminent domain was possible. (I know of cases where the State condemned church owned property) And pressure because of the need of more housing in that area, NY harbor houses overlooking Manhattan are very desirable. WT religious order does need to operate from such expensive residential real estate ANYMORE, and that is a lot of cash. Move to warwick to prepare for God's war with the wicked and direct things from there. An expected GT by 2017 (anyone read that hint in a publication?)

But the WT will NEVER loose tax status because they are a religious order and a non prophet organization same as other religions, protected by the constitution same as ss marriages. Religions serve a political purpose but they do not want to learn from history (STOP making trouble) but religions harboring dead Gods will not last for ever. Religion is doomed unless God comes to her rescue. Religion is integrated into the US Constitution but the UN has trained Russian troops to be sent into the US to fight against civilians because ( I have been told ) American troops cannot be unleashed against the American people. WT is not worried in the least about lawsuits (or money), they are veterans, they tried to close WT back circa 1914 and WT foes were defeated and humiliated, WT marched through Court Street for 100 years proclaiming their victory. See how things play out now, but my money is on the WT. In the end they will win. That is how I see the chess board.

Beth Sarim

These legal issues in North America could very well be the massive downsizing of Bethelites and this halt in construction, in order to battle these lawsuit. I just do not know how they will spin this to the rank and file if they should announce it sometime.

Mephis

UK theoretically has a public interest test, but there's little appetite to fight religions over it really. Exclusive Brethren had to make changes (cosmetic ones at least) before they got it, but they still received it. Think they'd have to be very, very stupid with refusing to introduce child protection policies to force the authorities here to remove tax exempt status from them. And they've shown that they're stupid in all sorts of ways, but not in their ability to tell half-truths to avoid that.

jwfacts

I think it needs to come when all religion have tax exempt status revoked.

Tax is only on the profits that an organisation makes, not their revenue. If a religion is making large profits, it is an indication it is hoarding its donations, therefore I can see no reason it should not be taxed. Any legitimate group that is putting money back into the community through charitable works does not need to be concerned with paying excessive taxes.

Question: What would it take to get the BORG'S tax exempt status REVOKED?

Diogenesister