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Oh, good grief! Just about any group for any purpose can be a non-profit. A high school team booster club can be a non-profit. The Bolder Boulder 10K race is a non-profit, the beneficiary being themselves. Many symphonies and other arts groups are non-profits. While I agree that art is a public good, I don't see how they do more than churches to help people.
No, that's not even close to being true. Any old group CANNOT become a 501(c)3 non-profit entity. The requirements are actually quite stringent.
According to the IRS Publication 557, in the Organization Reference Chart section, the following is an exact list of 501(c) organization types and their corresponding descriptions.[1]
501(c)(1) — Corporations Organized Under Act of Congress (including Federal Credit Unions)
501(c)(2) — Title Holding Corporation for Exempt Organization
501(c)(3) — Religious, Educational, Charitable, Scientific, Literary, Testing for Public Safety, to Foster National or International Amateur Sports Competition, or Prevention of Cruelty to Children or Animals Organizations
501(c)(4) — Civic Leagues, Social Welfare Organizations, and Local Associations of Employees
501(c)(5) — Labor, Agricultural, and Horticultural Organizations
501(c)(6) — Business Leagues, Chambers of Commerce, Real Estate Boards, etc.
501(c)(7) — Social and Recreational Clubs
501(c)(8) — Fraternal Beneficiary Societies and Associations
501(c)(9) — Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Associations
501(c)(10) — Domestic Fraternal Societies and Associations
501(c)(11) — Teachers' Retirement Fund Associations
501(c)(12) — Benevolent Life Insurance Associations, Mutual Ditch or Irrigation Companies, Mutual or Cooperative Telephone Companies, etc.
501(c)(13) — Cemetery Companies
501(c)(14) — State-Chartered Credit Unions, Mutual Reserve Funds
501(c)(15) — Mutual Insurance Companies or Associations
501(c)(16) — Cooperative Organizations to Finance Crop Operations501(c)(17) — Supplemental Unemployment Benefit Trusts
501(c)(18) — Employee Funded Pension Trust (created before June 25, 1959)
501(c)(19) — Post or Organization of Past or Present Members of the Armed Forces
501(c)(21) — Black lung Benefit Trusts
501(c)(22) — Withdrawal Liability Payment Fund
501(c)(23) — Veterans Organization (created before 1880)
501(c)(25) — Title Holding Corporations or Trusts with Multiple Parents
501(c)(26) — State-Sponsored Organization Providing Health Coverage for High-Risk Individuals
501(c)(27) — State-Sponsored Workers' Compensation Reinsurance Organization
501(c)(28) — National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust
Last edited by Katarina Witt; 06-09-2012 at 08:04 PM..
If government starts taxing church property based upon a state official's assessment of it's value (what a concept, a government official dictating value on property the govenment will receive money from based upon it's declared value), you'll see plenty of churches selling off their property and start bringing back tent revivals.
Good.Then they could actually build revenue-producing buildings there that would help these municipalities get by. There are TOO MANY churches that build on a grand scale in the wealthiest parts of town. The Cornerstone church in San Antonio is built in the upscale Stone Oak neighborhood and occupies at least 5 acres of prime land. there is some other church with a eyesore cross that towers over all of the other buildings on Loop 1604 just down the street. Think how many families or real businesses could build there and provide much needed revenue for the city. They freeload off of the businesses and ppl that actually DO pay taxes.
Excellent. Religious organizations should not be tax-exempt. And perhaps, as someone else suggested, all nonprofit organizations should be taxed the same as any other business.
Does your proposal cover all charitable deductions or just the ones that go to organizations of which you disapprove?
When I've donated to gay advocacy groups in the past, they've always made it clear that it was not a valid tax deduction. since the churches have taken it upon themselves to inject themselves into politics, I also believe that ppl should not be able to deduct those contributions from their federal income tax.
First of all, you're wrong. Dead wrong. I am not by any means Catholic, but what the Catholic Church does in the city where I live would blow your socks off (of course, you won't believe it anyway...).
The Catholic Church built, funds, and runs the ONLY Homeless Shelter in our city. The VA won't even do that for its homeless veterans, for crying out loud! So much for the government doing a great job, huhhh?
Also, I spoke recently with a member of a small downtown Catholic parish that provides meals for all the homeless who come - and we're not talking about a few meals. They prepare and serve over 500 meals every single day, with NO government funds. Nada. Nil. And this is a church with only about 150 members, and ALL of the kitchen workers are volunteer. What government agency is doing that? And how much money do government workers earn for doing what they do?
In short, you really need to get off your "churches do nothing of value" kick. Take off your partisan liberal blinders and open your eyes.
That said, you also need to do some more research, so that you can correct your completely crazy view of what churches do and do not pay for taxes.
The ONLY significant tax churches don't pay is Property Tax. So let's go ahead and remove all property tax exemptions from all churches! Just keep several things in mind...
1. The value of most church properties is startlingly low. Average attendance at American churches is about 75 people. That means most church buildings are tiny little building that sit on tiny little lots. Most are worth far less than $100,000 - partly because they cannot be used for anything else. Just how much do you think those properties are worth, and how much property tax money will be raised?
2. Keep in mind that there will be hell to pay. Not from churches, but from every other non-profit that will end up having to pay property taxes. Consider the property tax liability of your local university! Then tell me that the problem is going to be churches!
You folks really need to THINK before proposing things like this.
Heh ... pretty exciting topic huh ...
Hey, while you are jumping out of your shorts, go back and find where I proposed that churches should pay taxes ... I'll wait. Hint: I haven't. What I did was read an interesting article / blog from a NPR reporter / commentator on this subject and pass on the topic ... and I knew it would be interesting to a lot of people to hash around ... and here we are.
Lots of conflicting information out there about church revenue and church charities. The NPR piece claimed that only a relatively small fraction of church incomes go to charitable work. I personally dunno.
But I do know that whatever good work any of you can anecdotally report on, such as Big George has done here, doesn't mean squat except that some individual charitable works are being performed -- and that's swell. Anecdotal stories don't contain audited statistics in aggregate totals. Perhaps the catholic church, for example, spends most of its income on charitable work ... maybe it doesn't. From what I have been browsing this evening, it appears the catholic charities, USA, gets most of its money from the US government's Faith Based Initiatives program ... I think the figure is close to $3 billion annually (yes, billion), vastly more than they themselves collect and contribute to the charitable work they perform in their name.
"Catholic Charities received a total of nearly $2.9 billion from the US government in 2010. In comparison, its annual revenue was $4.67 billion. Only about $140 million came from donations from diocesan churches, the remainder coming from in-kind contributions, investments, program fees, and community donations.[12]"
Other reports, including from CNN, state that money formerly collected and earmarked for charity work now go to Vatican operating expenses, because the church is operating at a loss.
I do know that catholic charities, USA, got $2.9 BILLION from the US government Faith Based Initiatives program in 2010 ...
Now then, they do good work with it -- in their name -- and they do apply 89% of their charitable contributions to actual charity ... which means that what, about $400,000 goes to their operations costs (salaries, equipment, etc.) ... most of that being taxpayer money retained for their management.
^^Well, churches provide spritual and educational benefits to their members, at least as much as labor, agricultural and horticultural organizations; Business Leagues, Chambers of Commerce, Real Estate Boards, etc.; Social and Recreational Clubs; Cemetery Companies; Domestic Fraternal Societies and Associations; Benevolent Life Insurance Associations, Mutual Ditch or Irrigation Companies, Mutual or Cooperative Telephone Companies, etc; State-Chartered Credit Unions, Mutual Reserve Funds; Cooperative Organizations to Finance Crop Operations; or any of the rest of them do.
If government starts taxing church property based upon a state official's assessment of it's value (what a concept, a government official dictating value on property the govenment will receive money from based upon it's declared value), you'll see plenty of churches selling off their property and start bringing back tent revivals.
What other way does government obtain assessed valuations for the purposes of taxation?
There are plenty of them out there. They aren't all performing some great public benefit. Plenty are just benefitting their members.
Oh I know! You're right.
I was on the Board of Directors for a start-up 501(c)3 entity that awarded scholarships to highly qualified high school graduates. It was an excellent Foundation. It was also a royal pain in the butt to get certified as a non-profit.
Honestly - based on what I know is required - I'd venture a guess that if ALL 501(c)3 entities were closely scrutinized, a MAJORITY of them would lose their tax-free status.
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What other way does government obtain assessed valuations for the purposes of taxation?
