SF and the Church: More Evidence that We Are Right

There's another interesting article in this week's Catholic San Francisco. It deals with the issue we've been blogging about this week: San Francisco's attempt to impose a transfer tax on the Archdiocese following it's reorganization:

"Archdiocese challenges determination of San Francisco County Assessor/RecorderJune 10th, 2009

In a fight to preserve the freedom of religious organizations to restructure, the Archdiocese of San Francisco is contesting an attempt by the San Francisco County Assessor/Recorder to impose a property transfer tax on an internal reorganization involving Archdiocesan parish and school properties.

An administrative hearing to decide the issue will be held on June 16, 2009. The panel consists of the San Francisco Tax Collector, the Chief of Real Estate and Controller. The decision of the panel can be appealed, if necessary, to the civil courts."

The article then relates something we had not known:

"The same transfers at issue in San Francisco were made promptly without the imposition of a tax in both San Mateo and Marin counties more than a year ago...

(Archdiocesan attorney Jack) Hammel said, 'The San FranciscoAssessor/Recorder is alone among county recorders in taking such an extreme position.'"

As we wrote yesterday:

"... there is an irreconcilable conflict between what the homosexual activists want and the teaching of our Church. Today the government of San Francisco, controlled by homosexual activists, has moved far beyond the bludgeon of program defunding. In payback for our Church’s defense of natural marriage, they are now trying a new interpretation of the tax code to punish the Church."

The Archdiocese of San Francisco covers three counties: San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin. The fact that only one one of the three counties has seen fit to try and impose new taxes on the Church seems to to support our argument.

Posted by Gibbons J. Cooney