Files

Download

Download Full Text (13.9 MB)

Description

The Supreme Court generally conditions tax exemptions, deductions, and exclusions for religious organizations and activities upon the simultaneous extension of such benefits to secular institutions and undertakings. The Court's position flows logically from its acceptance of the premise that tax exemptions, deductions, and exclusions constitute subsidies. However, the "subsidy" label is usually deployed in a conclusory and unconvincing fashion. The First Amendment is best understood as permitting governments to refrain from taxation to accommodate the autonomy of religious actors and activities; hence, tax benefits extended solely to religious institutions should pass constitutional muster as recognition of that autonomy.

Publication Date

7-2001

Volume

42

Publisher

Boston College Law Review

First Page

805

Keywords

religion, religious exemption, taxes, tax law, constitutional law

Disciplines

Law | Tax Law

Download

Included in

Tax Law Commons

Share

COinS