Are Income Tax Preferences for Clergy Constitutional?

Michael L. Gompertz, a retired IRS attorney, has published Lawsuit Challenges Income Tax Preferences for Clergy in the July 5th edition of Tax Notes.  Tax Notes’ synopsis follows:

In this article, the author argues that sections 107 and 265(a)(6)(B) are unconstitutional because they are narrow tax preferences for clergy that violate the First Amendment’s establishment clause.  Taxpayers have standing to challenge these sections.  In Freedom From Religion Foundation v. Geithner, a district court correctly denied the government’s motion to dismiss taxpayers’ claims that section 107 is unconstitutional, but incorrectly granted the motion to dismiss claims that section 265(a)(6)(B) is unconstitutional.

We previously blogged about the significance of the Freedom From Religion Foundation v. Geithner case.

NAM