Breaking: Federal District Court Declares A Religious Income Tax Exemption Unconstitutional [View all]

[StarrGazerr]

Last edited Sat Nov 23, 2013, 10:16 AM - Edit history (1)

A federal district court judge has declared “unconstitutional” a portion of U.S. law that allows “a minister of the gospel” to not pay income tax on a specific portion of their compensation.

U.S. District Court Judge Barbara B. Crabb of the Western District of Wisconsin ruled that the so-called “parish exemption,” which allows religious ministers to avoid paying taxes on the value of their housing granted to them by their religious employers, “violates the establishment clause” of the U.S. Constitution and must be discontinued.

The law, 26 U.S. C. § 107(2), has bee on the books since 1954.

The tax exemption was estimated to cost U.S. taxpayers $2.3 billion from 2002-2007 alone, likely more in the years since.

http://thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/breaking-federal-district-court-declares-a-religious-income-tax-exemption-unconstitutional/politics/2013/11/22/79158#.UpDDguIliov

[Edited to add link]