May 22, 2000
Court upholds stripping church of tax-exept status
___WASHINGTON (RNS)--An appellate court has upheld a federal court ruling removing a New York church's tax-exempt status after it bought newspaper ads opposing then-presidential candidate Bill Clinton's 1992 campaign.
___The revocation--which marked the first time a church lost its tax exemption for political activity--"neither violated the Constitution nor exceeded the IRS' statutory authority," ruled a three-judge panel of the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia May 12.
___ Lawyers for the Church at Pierce Creek in the Binghamton, N.Y., area, had argued the Internal Revenue Service violated the church's free-speech rights, engaged in selective prosecution and exceeded its authority.
___ "These objections are without merit," the appellate court found in a unanimous ruling.
___ Just before the 1992 election, the church and its pastor, Daniel Little, purchased full-page advertisements in USA Today and the Washington Times to encourage voters to reject Clinton based on his stands on homosexuality and abortion.
___ Americans United for Separation and State filed a complaint with the tax agency after the "Christians Beware" ads appeared.
___ "The decision slams the door on mixing religion and partisan politics," said Barry Lynn, executive director of the Washington-based public policy agency. "This is a staggering defeat for Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell and others who want to convert America's churches into a partisan political machine."
___ The court said churches can form separate, non-exempt organizations "for the promotion of social welfare." Those entities can create political action committees to take part in campaigns, it ruled.
___ Jay Sekulow, chief counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice, represented the church. He said his law firm, which was founded by religious broadcaster Pat Robertson, had not decided whether to appeal the case to the Supreme Court.
___ "While we are disappointed with the ... case involving the Church at Pierce Creek, we are encouraged that this court appears to provide a blueprint for churches to express their beliefs in a political context," Sekulow said. "This is an important development in the area of protecting the First Amendment rights."
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