Southern Baptist leaders welcome repeal of tax on churches
Two Southern Baptist entity heads have greeted the repeal of a two-year-old tax on churches and other nonprofit organizations with gratitude.
President Trump signed into law Dec. 20 a spending bill that includes language rescinding a section of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 that requires houses of worship and other nonprofits to pay a 21 percent tax on such employee benefits as parking and transportation. The Senate approved the legislation that included the repeal Dec. 19 in a bipartisan, 71-23 roll call. The House of Representatives passed the measure also in bipartisan fashion by a 297-120 vote Dec. 17.
If it had not been repealed, the provision -- which took effect Jan. 1, 2018 -- would have cost the charitable sector an estimated $1.7 billion in the next decade, according to opponents of the law. It also would have burdened churches and others with accounting and compliances costs not...
