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DonViejo

(60,536 posts) Mon Mar 4, 2019, 11:40 AM Mar 2019

Supreme Court refuses to hear church requests for historic preservation funds

Source: USA Today

Richard Wolf, USA TODAY Published 9:51 a.m. ET March 4, 2019

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court refused Monday to consider whether churches and other religious institutions should be able to receive public taxpayer funds for historic preservation.

The action stopped short of extending the justices' 2017 ruling that churches can be eligible for purely secular grant programs such as playground renovations.

New Jersey's Supreme Court ruled unanimously last year that religious institutions were ineligible for government funds under the New Jersey Constitution. The state justices reached that conclusion despite the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in the Missouri playground case the year before.

The Supreme Court's action apparently was unanimous, but three conservative justices registered their concern that the lower court decision "is in serious tension with this Court’s religious equality precedents."

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/03/04/supreme-court-wont-hear-church-request-historic-preservation-funds/2943653002/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzRss&utm_campaign=usatodaycomwashington-topstories

5 replies

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Supreme Court refuses to hear church requests for historic preservation funds (Original Post) DonViejo Mar 2019 OP

Maybe some of them realize True Blue American Mar 2019 #1

Problem is that majority of their recent religious Panich52 Mar 2019 #2

Ummm, when they start paying their fair share of taxes ToxMarz Mar 2019 #3

There are churches that are melm00se Mar 2019 #4

Convert churches into homeless shelters Zorro Mar 2019 #5

True Blue American

(17,986 posts)

1. Maybe some of them realize

Reply to DonViejo (Original post)

Mon Mar 4, 2019, 12:03 PM

Mar 2019

They do not want to be tarred by the Trump gang. They know they will be there long after Trump is gone and are thinking about their own reputation.

They know full well Separation Of Church And State is the Law.

Panich52

(5,829 posts)

2. Problem is that majority of their recent religious

Reply to DonViejo (Original post)

Mon Mar 4, 2019, 12:10 PM

Mar 2019

equality precedents tend to ignore separation, at least when the religion in dispute is Christianity.

ToxMarz

(2,169 posts)

3. Ummm, when they start paying their fair share of taxes

Reply to DonViejo (Original post)

Mon Mar 4, 2019, 01:38 PM

Mar 2019

they can be considered for their fair share of access to taxpayer dollars

melm00se

(4,993 posts)

4. There are churches that are

Reply to DonViejo (Original post)

Mon Mar 4, 2019, 02:55 PM

Mar 2019

frankly total works of art and it is in the best interests of maintaining them as they add to the cultural and artistic tone of society.

There, also, are churches that are the artistic equivalent of a strip plaza.

Zorro

(15,740 posts)

5. Convert churches into homeless shelters

Reply to melm00se (Reply #4)

Mon Mar 4, 2019, 03:10 PM

Mar 2019

Then they would have a legitimate reason to ask for taxpayer dollars.

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