Tax Problems Posed by Pseudo-Religious Movements

Abstract

Assume for a moment that in 1847 one Brigham Young had presented himself to your local tax assessor and stated that he was the presiding clergyman of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints and that he was therefore entitled to the appropriate real property tax exemptions for property owned by him and his church. Chances are that Mr. Young's requests would have been quickly, if not summarily, denied. And yet, in 1979, if a Mormon clergyman requests an exemption on a Mormon church anywhere in the United States, there will undoubtedly be few if any problems prior to speedy granting of that request. What happened during those one hundred thirty-two years to change the assessor's attitude is, of course, a chapter in American history. When that change in attitude occurred or, more precisely, what standards and cri teria might have been applied in each situation is the subject of this paper.