60 minutes piece - Mormon church investment fund

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www.cbsnews.com/news/mormon-church-ensign-peak-whistleblower-david-nielsen-allegations-60-minutes-2023-05-14/


I highly doubt the Mormon church is the only one that has this amount of cash stockpiled. The fact that churches are tax exempt makes religion just ripe for fraud. I don't understand why this continues to exist.

[Deleted]

And if you want to continue to allow them to be tax exempt, I don't understand why they shouldn't at least have to disclose any details of their financials to the IRS in order to maintain their status.

[sent]

May 15, 2023 8:24:14 GMT -5 @rebeccawelton said:

I don't understand why this continues to exist.

While stuff like this absolutely makes me feel like the rules are definitely being gamed beyond their intended purposes, I'm not completely against the tax exemption of religious facilities. People of my religion have only been in the US since the 1960s when immigration laws changed to let them come here. In general, people of our immigrant group achieved great financial success in the 80s, 90s and this continues today. Many have poured efforts of their success into building nicer religious facilities and community centers in the last 25 years in the hopes of creating places where our religion can thrive and not die out in the US. These facilities are minuscule compared to anything that the traditional Judeo-Christian faiths have built and acquired over the last 200 years. I can't say there is massive abuse of this tax exemption status in our small religious community, I feel like I would have definitely heard about it if there was. I do know it costs a lot to build, maintain these facilities and properties, and pay the loans used to build them so being tax exempt only helps us and hopefully helps us maintain the diversity and equality we all so badly want in our country. 

[Deleted]

May 15, 2023 9:09:06 GMT -5 sent said:

May 15, 2023 8:24:14 GMT -5 @rebeccawelton said:

I don't understand why this continues to exist.

While stuff like this absolutely makes me feel like the rules are definitely being gamed beyond their intended purposes, I'm not completely against the tax exemption of religious facilities. People of my religion have only been in the US since the 1960s when immigration laws changed to let them come here. In general, people of our immigrant group achieved great financial success in the 80s, 90s and this continues today. Many have poured efforts of their success into building nicer religious facilities and community centers in the last 25 years in the hopes of creating places where our religion can thrive and not die out in the US. These facilities are minuscule compared to anything that the traditional Judeo-Christian faiths have built over the last 200 years. I can't say there is massive abuse of this tax exemption status in our small religious community, I feel like I would have definitely heard about it if there was. I do know it costs a lot to build and maintain these facilities and properties so being tax exempt only helps us and hopefully helps us maintain the diversity and equality we all so badly want in our country. 

That makes a lot of sense. Thank you for that perspective. I think I'm just super jaded by the stories of these mega organizations that you know are not using the benefit as it is intended. 

[Michelle]

May 15, 2023 9:09:06 GMT -5 sent said:

May 15, 2023 8:24:14 GMT -5 @rebeccawelton said:

I don't understand why this continues to exist.

While stuff like this absolutely makes me feel like the rules are definitely being gamed beyond their intended purposes, I'm not completely against the tax exemption of religious facilities. People of my religion have only been in the US since the 1960s when immigration laws changed to let them come here. In general, people of our immigrant group achieved great financial success in the 80s, 90s and this continues today. Many have poured efforts of their success into building nicer religious facilities and community centers in the last 25 years in the hopes of creating places where our religion can thrive and not die out in the US. These facilities are minuscule compared to anything that the traditional Judeo-Christian faiths have built over the last 200 years. I can't say there is massive abuse of this tax exemption status in our small religious community, I feel like I would have definitely heard about it if there was. I do know it costs a lot to build and maintain these facilities and properties so being tax exempt only helps us and hopefully helps us maintain the diversity and equality we all so badly want in our country. 

I think the small churches who help lift up communities are exactly what the tax exemption was meant to support.

It should probably change so that if you bring in more than $# per year you have to pay incremental taxes based on church income.

[Deleted]

May 15, 2023 10:19:24 GMT -5 Michelle said:

May 15, 2023 9:09:06 GMT -5 sent said:

While stuff like this absolutely makes me feel like the rules are definitely being gamed beyond their intended purposes, I'm not completely against the tax exemption of religious facilities. People of my religion have only been in the US since the 1960s when immigration laws changed to let them come here. In general, people of our immigrant group achieved great financial success in the 80s, 90s and this continues today. Many have poured efforts of their success into building nicer religious facilities and community centers in the last 25 years in the hopes of creating places where our religion can thrive and not die out in the US. These facilities are minuscule compared to anything that the traditional Judeo-Christian faiths have built over the last 200 years. I can't say there is massive abuse of this tax exemption status in our small religious community, I feel like I would have definitely heard about it if there was. I do know it costs a lot to build and maintain these facilities and properties so being tax exempt only helps us and hopefully helps us maintain the diversity and equality we all so badly want in our country. 

I think the small churches who help lift up communities are exactly what the tax exemption was meant to support.

It should probably change so that if you bring in more than $# per year you have to pay incremental taxes based on church income.

This is what I was coming back to post. I don't think it was ever designed to support these mega-churches/funds that are in the billions.

[pixy0stix]

I think, at this juncture, our tax laws surrounding churches need a good overhaul. As is, there needs to be stricter oversight on them, which just isn't happening because the IRS has no appetite or staff to do so.

[pixy0stix]

I just finished watching the piece, and the Mormon spokesperson speaks with the same inflection and smarminess that Warren Jeffs had whenever he spoke. You'd think leadership would want to move away from that image, but it appears to be encoded into how their leadership is to present themselves.

[sent]

May 15, 2023 9:29:41 GMT -5 @rebeccawelton said:

May 15, 2023 9:09:06 GMT -5 sent said:

While stuff like this absolutely makes me feel like the rules are definitely being gamed beyond their intended purposes, I'm not completely against the tax exemption of religious facilities. People of my religion have only been in the US since the 1960s when immigration laws changed to let them come here. In general, people of our immigrant group achieved great financial success in the 80s, 90s and this continues today. Many have poured efforts of their success into building nicer religious facilities and community centers in the last 25 years in the hopes of creating places where our religion can thrive and not die out in the US. These facilities are minuscule compared to anything that the traditional Judeo-Christian faiths have built over the last 200 years. I can't say there is massive abuse of this tax exemption status in our small religious community, I feel like I would have definitely heard about it if there was. I do know it costs a lot to build and maintain these facilities and properties so being tax exempt only helps us and hopefully helps us maintain the diversity and equality we all so badly want in our country. 

That makes a lot of sense. Thank you for that perspective. I think I'm just super jaded by the stories of these mega organizations that you know are not using the benefit as it is intended. 

Yeah, I get it. I watched "The Mighty Gemstones" on HBO lol.