Is ministers’ housing allowance constitutional?
Is the Tax Code provision exempting a minister’s housing allowance from income tax a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment for improperly favoring religious entities? A federal District Court in California has permitted the Freedom from Religion Foundation and several individuals to proceed with a suit challenging the provision which excludes from taxable income both the rental value of church-owned housing provided to ministers and the cash allowance paid to ministers if they need to acquire housing not provided by the church. Section 107 of the Tax Code excludes from taxable income the rental value of a home furnished as remuneration for services “ordinarily the...
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