Tax the churches

Democracy Chronicles

From Democracy Chronicles:

While religious organizations have unofficially been the recipients of a tax-exempt status since the founding of the United States, official federal income tax exemption was granted in 1894. Today, in the United States, there are 300,000 religious congregations that pay no tax whatsoever. Which means they pay zero in federal, state, local, income, sales, and property taxes, even though together they own an estimated $600 billion in property. 

Those in favor of maintaining this tax-exempt status argue “that a tax exemption keeps the government out of church finances and thus upholds the separation of church and state,” but at a time when the United States’ national debt stands at $19.3 trillion or 105% of GDP, it is time that we have all hands on deck and everyone should pay their fair share of utilizing our national resources, without any exception to religious entities...

‘Wasted our lives’: Catholic sex abuse scandals again prompt a crisis of faith

Rob's comment:

In the wake of the constant stories of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, the least we should do is start taxing that religious organization---and all churches. Make the believers pay their own way without taxpayer subsidy. Tax their income and their property. If that puts them out of business, so be it. The world would be better for it.