[Vision2020] Letter to the religious communities in Moscow

[DonaldH675 at aol.com]

Below is a letter sent today to as many religious congregations as we were  
able to contact via email.  If any 2020 members are able to pass this along  to 
their pastor or church leaders please do so.  Thank you.
 
Saundra Lund
Rose Huskey
 
 
   
 
 
 
Greetings
 
We were notified today (February 17, 2005) of a posting on a local  blog site 
_http://right-mind.us/archive/2005/02/17/1833.aspx#FeedBack_ 
(http://right-mind.us/archive/2005/02/17/1833.aspx#FeedBack)   hosted by Dale Courtney, a 
Moscow resident.  Mr. Courtney writes that  "local churches are in their [Huskey 
and Lund] sites [sic]" for violating  the "exclusive use" policy that Lund & 
Huskey find so criminal."  He  further claims that we brought a "lawsuit" that 
"effectively throws out all of  the charitable uses of a church building" Mr. 
Courtney provides a list  of area churches that he intends to "warn" about us.  
 We will not  speculate on his motivation in deliberately distorting the 
facts of the  case, beyond noting that he is a member of Christ Church. 
 
We did not file a lawsuit.  We filed a request for  revocation of property 
tax exemption with the Latah County Board of  Equalization. Mr. Courtney's 
allegation of a lawsuit is  inflammatory and factually unfounded.  
 
Our revocation request was based on Idaho Code  62-603B.  
_http://www3.state.id.us/cgi-bin/newidst?sctid=630060002B.K_ 
(http://www3.state.id.us/cgi-bin/newidst?sctid=630060002B.K)   
 
The property tax revocation request for Anselm House was initiated  because 
Anselm House is used, in our opinion, in a manner  indistinguishable from a 
commercial building.  It is not used as  a church.  Idaho Statute clearly states 
that places of worship,  parsonages, and recreation halls used by a church are 
exempt from property  tax.  Anselm House is not a place of worship, it is not 
a  parsonage, it is not a recreation hall.  These facts were not in  dispute.
 
Anselm House houses Canon Press.  Canon Press is, historically, a  million 
dollar a year business.   In sworn testimony  offered November, 2004 before the 
Idaho Board of Tax  Appeals, Canon Press officials indicated that the press 
expected  approximately $900,000 in revenue for the year. Canon Press pays book 
royalties  to the church pastor, Doug Wilson, his family members, church 
elders,  and  members of the congregation who have published their work in Canon  
Press. To our knowledge, Mr. Dickison, counsel for Christ Church, presented  no 
financial records indicating that Canon Press is a non-profit business.
 
The other property tax exemption revocation we requested referenced  New St. 
Andrews College.  Our revocation request was based on Idaho  Code  62-603E. 
_http://www3.state.id.us/cgi-bin/newidst?sctid=630060002E.K_ 
(http://www3.state.id.us/cgi-bin/newidst?sctid=630060002E.K) 
 
The statute requires  "all property [must be] used  exclusively for nonprofit 
school or educational purposes" in order to merit  property tax exemption.  
To our knowledge New St. Andrews attorney, Mr.  Greg Dickison, presented no 
financial records, (either at the local Board of  Equalization hearings or at the 
Idaho Board of Tax Appeals) proving the  non-profit status of the school.  
New St. Andrews has chosen not to apply  for 501-(c)(3) status.  "To maintain 
its integrity as a Christian  institution and to avoid compromise with the 
federal government’s increasingly  anti-Christian policies by receiving any direct 
or indirect benefits from the  government, the College has chosen not to be 
tax exempt (501[C]3)." _http://www.nsa.edu/mission/finances.html#contributing_ 
(http://www.nsa.edu/mission/finances.html#contributing) 
 
New St. Andrews College leases commercial space to a cafe/bakery owned by a  
church member.  We believe this is a clear violation of the "exclusive use"  
clause. The Latah County Board of Equalization rendered a split decision on our 
 revocation request.  A split decision upholds the status quo, that is,  
currently New St. Andrews pays a prorated amount of property tax.  We  appealed 
that finding to the Idaho Board of Tax Appeals.  The IBTA has not  announced 
their decision on our appeal.
 
We were warned that personal attacks were part of the price we  would pay for 
questioning the  property tax exemptions granted to Anselm  House and New St. 
Andrews College.  If Mr. Courtney is seeking to sow  the seeds of discord and 
fear in religious congregations throughout the county,  we strongly condemn 
his actions and firmly believe his efforts will  fail. Religious congregations 
in Latah County may be assured that we  have no interest in pursuing what 
appears to us to be Mr.  Courtney's revenge-driven agenda.
 
If you have further questions about this matter, or would like to examine  
the full record of the local hearing, including taped testimony, the  Latah 
County Commissioner's Office maintains the official  record.  The Idaho Board of 
Tax Appeals in Boise maintains the records  of their hearing.  A public records 
request under the Freedom of  Information Act will provide those materials to 
any interested person.
 
We ask that you share this email with members of your congregation.   We have 
tried to reach as many religious congregations as we can  with this email, 
but fear we may have missed some.  If you, or your  congregation is a member of 
an inter-faith group in Moscow or Pullman, we ask  that you share this 
communication with them.  Thank you.
 
Sincerely,
Saundra  Lund                          Rose  Huskey

Moscow,  Idaho                        Moscow,  Idaho
_sslund at adelphia.net_ (mailto:sslund at adelphia.net)                 
_donaldh675 at aol.com_ (mailto:donaldh675 at aol.com) 


 

 


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