LETTER: Churches should only get tax break on religious use

When does religion come in conflict with the business community and non-profit become a by-word for cheating?

When a church under the guise of being a non-profit buys and sells on the open business market, then it is no longer non-profit.

When a church buys property and claims non-profit status and causes a city, county or state to lose its tax base and the taxpayer must make up the loss of revenue, in my opinion it’s cheating.

The Fresh Life Church already owns two building in the downtown Kalispell area and does not pay taxes on that property. I have no problem with any church or synagogue having a tax exemption on the property that houses their religious building. But I do have a problem with a church that uses its non-profit status to avoid paying property taxes under the guise of religion.

If the building is not used specifically for religion, but is leased out to other tenants, then that would be “fraud.”

—Jim Garvey, Kalispell