NephyrS wrote:
Sales tax for items sold, property tax on properties they own, corporate income tax on the tithes and donations they take in, investment tax on investments they make....
I'm not aware of any general Federal Sales Tax, but if they're selling stuff for profit, and there's a Federal tax in place, sure, tax it.
I don't believe there should be a "property tax", and I'm not aware of any at the Federal Level.
I think taxing a charity on donations received is a good idea.
If by "investment tax" you mean capital gains, in theory I have the same problem with charities paying a capital gains tax as I do with individuals paying capital gains taxes. In reality I think making the Catholic Church (for example) pay a US CGT would be rather problematic as they would just invest overseas (Italy, for example) and would result in a big hit to investment firms in the US as that revenue would disappear.
NephyrS wrote:
The last total figure I saw was to the tune of $71 billion in subsidies and direct government money to churches per year.
And then, of course, there's the 2.2 billion the federal government gave to churches directly by the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives in 2009 alone.
As to government grants for scientific and technological advancement, we'll just have to agree to disagree. I figured that would likely be the case.
I'm not aware of what monies The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships gives to churches each year, and why, but I don't think the Gov't should be giving money to churches (or other private entities). My understanding is that billions of dollars are paid to churches annually for services rendered, and while I understand it, I still don't like it.
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"Dress cops up as soldiers, give them military equipment, train them in military tactics, tell them they’re fighting a ‘war,’ and the consequences are predictable." —Radley Balko