Wisconsin Supreme Court says Catholic charity group cannot claim religious tax exemption
The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that a major Catholic charity group’s activities were not “primarily” religious under state law, stripping the group of a key tax break and ordering it to pay into the state unemployment system. Catholic Charities Bureau (CCB) last year argued that the state had improperly removed its designation as a religious organization. The charity filed a lawsuit after the state said it did not qualify to be considered as an organization “operated primarily for religious purposes.” That order prevented the charity from using a Church-run unemployment system and forced it to contribute money to the state-run unemployment system instead.