How to Legally Dissolve a Religious Organization

by EasyPrompt 23 Replies latest watchtower scandals

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  EasyPrompt

  Regarding the state dissolving a church organization...

  
  

  As posted in another thread, here is what is happening in Japan, filing a court order to dissolve the Unification Church...

  
  

  https://www.eurasiareview.com/06092023-japan-seeks-court-order-to-dissolve-unification-church/

  
  

  Could it happen here to other religious organizations?

  
  

  This is an interesting read...

  
  

  (selection from pages 1549 and 1550 of "Michigan Law Review")

  
  

  "Nearly all states have statutory provisions for dissolution procedures, either voluntary or involuntary, for ecclesiastical corporations. The provisions display great variety, running the gamut from those that seem to be almost an afterthought to those that are highly sophisticated and patterned after similar sections in many business corporation acts. There are four principal procedures for dissolving an ecclesiastical corporation: (1) involuntary dissolution initiated by officers or members of the corporation, (2) involuntary dissolution initiated by the state attorney general or other public official, (3) voluntary dissolution upon vote of the membership of the corporation itself, and (4) dissolution by church officials upon extinction of the local corporate unit. Five states also allow dissolution when a creditor of a congregation has reduced a claim to judgment and the claim remains unsatisfied..."

  
  

  "Involuntary dissolution initiated by the state attorney general or other public official is a widely used method. Generally, the grounds for allowing dissolution on this basis are fraud in the procuring of the corporate franchise, abuse of the use of the corporate privilege, failure to file an annual report with the secretary of state or other designated public official, termination of the period of duration specified in the articles of incorporation, and general abuse of state law or violation of the public interest. As an outgrowth of his powers to oversee charities - a carry-over from the common law - the attorney general of the state is usually given the power to institute dissolution proceedings. Some states give this power to the prosecuting attorneys of the county in which the property of the corporation is located or to the state official charged with overseeing corporations within the state."

  
  

  https://repository.law.umich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4476&context=mlr

  
  

  And also here...

  
  

  "The corporation law of many states provides that church corporations may be dissolved involuntarily by the attorney general upon the occurrence of one or more of several grounds, including failure to pay fees prescribed by law, failure to file an annual report, fraudulent solicitation of funds, and exceeding the authority conferred by state corporation law."

  
  

  https://www.churchlawandtax.com/pastor-church-law/organization-and-administration/dissolution/#:~:text=The%20corporation%20law%20of%20many,of%20funds%2C%20and%20exceeding%20the

  
  

  
  
• 

  EasyPrompt

  Warwick headquarters is in Orange County, New York.

  WTBT$ of Pennsylvania's headquarters is in Wallkill, Ulster County, New York.

  Here is the contact information for the New York Attorney General...

  
  

  https://ag.ny.gov/contact-attorney-general-letitia-james
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  TonusOH

  That article appears to be saying that Japan wants to dissolve that church for financial reasons. That's a bad look. You could squeeze any religion for additional funding with the threat of shutting them down?
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  EasyPrompt

  Inurement: "The term inurement is defined as an insider (an officer, director, key employee, or anyone related to those individuals) in a nonprofit unfairly benefiting from a nonprofit’s resources by virtue of position." https://www.501c3.org/dangers-of-nonprofit-inurement-and-private-benefit/

  
  

  Under "Jeopardizing Tax-Exempt Status", the IRS Publication 1828 (Tax Guide for Churches and Religious Organizations) lists "Inurement and Private Benefit" as possible disqualifying factors of tax-exempt status...also in section on "Special Rules for Compensation of Ministers" under "Parsonage or Housing Allowances" it says "The minister's church or other qualified organization must designate the housing allowance by official action taken in advance of the payment. If a minister is employed and paid by a local congregation, a designation by a national church agency won't be effective. The local congregation must make the designation."

  
  

  https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1828.pdf

  
  

  Is the home in North Carolina considered a parsonage? Was the housing allowance designated in advance by official action? Was the local congregation involved, since that is where he is serving? Could the tax-exempt status be jeopardized by means of inurement?

  
  

  Also, regarding the CSA cases and social damage from shunning, do those put WTBT$ in "violation of public interest" and therefore at risk of being involuntarily dissolved by the attorney general?

  
  

  Public Interest: "public interest is "the welfare or well-being of the general public" and society." (wikipedia)

  
  

  "Violation of the public interest means an act that infringes on the health and safety of the public." (ilo.org)

  
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  EasyPrompt

  (There is a simple yet formal process to report tax-exempt organizations that are suspected of abuse...)

  
  

  "Tell the IRS about Suspected Tax Exempt Status Abuses

  Go ahead and complain. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is all ears – particularly about complaints alleging any abuse of the tax-exempt status granted to a non-profit organization."

  
  

  https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-tege/divulge_all_suspected_tax_exempt_status_abuses_to_the_irs.pdf

  
  

  Form for "Tax-Exempt Organization Complaint (Referral)"

  
  

  https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f13909.pdf

  
  

  "Form 13909, and any supporting documentation, can be submitted in a variety of ways:

  
  

  Mail to IRS EO Classification, Mail Code 4910DAL,

  1100 Commerce St., Dallas, TX 75242-1198

  Fax to 214-413-5415, or

  Email to [email protected].

  
  

  The IRS takes all complaints seriously and scrutinizes all referrals."

  
  

  
  
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  luckynedpepper

  i know of NO congregation that has ever filed a tax return. We know WTBTS has.
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  Lee Marsh

  Every non-profit has to report yearly on their finances. If they fail to do this they lose next year's money.

  If they are not using what they get for the reason they got it they lose next year's money.

  Non-profits are required to report ALL their income from other sources. They are required to report what they got the money for and what they did with it. Failure to do this will cause them to lose next year's money.

  The US has religious rights written into the constitution. Not all countries have this. In fact, I expect very few of them do.

  One recent question in many countries, however, is this: Are the rights of a religion or any group, above the rights of an individual? And if they are violating the rights of individuals, should they maintain their non-profit status?
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  EasyPrompt

  One of the reasons the attorney general can dissolve a religious corporation is "fraudulent solicitation of funds."

  
  

  None of the videos or articles on the JWBorg website talk about the millions of dollars used to settle CSA cases.

  
  

  How many of the videos or articles on the JWBorg website talk about the purchase of a home for an ex-governing body member?

  
  

  When a person signs up to give a recurring monthly donation, they are sent an automated monthly email from JWBorg that talks about how the donations are used. The stories mention building KHs in far-flung places, or providing literature for less fortunate ones. Nothing is mentioned about the CSA cases and paying for the damage done by pedophiles the JWBorg protected.

  
  

  The headquarters people don't apologize for the CSA, but they make the rank and file pay for the damages done by it.

  
  

  They say: "We love you very much!" 🤑🤮

  
  

  https://www.jw.org/en/library/series/how-your-donations-are-used/

  
  

  fraudulent: "obtained, done by, or involving deception, especially criminal deception." (oxford languages)
• 

  Anony Mous

  This would fall under: administrative costs.

  The activities at our world headquarters, branch offices, and translation offices, as well as the activities of those serving as traveling ministers, are supported by funds donated to our worldwide work.

  Nothing about it is fraudulent or criminal, they don’t have to report every receipt and the CSA lawsuits are small potatoes in comparison with the massive real estate enterprise they have. Based on business bank reporting, the US branch of WTBTS alone has revenues exceeding $1B annually.

  Their side business however (circuit-vehicles, regionalbuildingcommittee and used-tools-equipment websites) are legally dubious. Basically they take your donations, instead of renting/leasing equipment, they purchase it (making it an expense on the balance) and then they resell it again through a for-profit corporation while keeping/putting congregations in a sham debt on the purchase.

  It could be said that these kinds of businesses are well outside the scope of a not-for-profit combined with some money laundering, but you’d need to do some serious investigations in documents that the government would have to subpoena.
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  EasyPrompt

  "they don’t have to report"
  

  
  

  Perhaps the government doesn't require them to report certain things, but God does require we make an accurate accounting.

  
  

  When the organization presents itself to poor little old ladies or children saving pennies in their piggy banks as if the organization is forwarding that money to help feed starving refugees of a natural disaster or making a braille publication for a blind widow in sub-Saharan Africa, the organization is doing false advertising to its flock.

  
  

  Jesus said "you are making the House of My Father into a Cave of Robbers!"

  
  

  @AnonyMous, I can see mixing such shady business practices into worship don't faze you any.

  
  

  "The activities at our world headquarters, branch offices, and translation offices, as well as the activities of those serving as traveling ministers, are supported by funds donated to our worldwide work.

  Nothing about it is fraudulent or criminal"

  
  

  It is all fraudulent and criminal according to God's Word. Jesus said "you received free, give free" and Paul said able-bodied ministers should work for what they eat and not live off others' incomes. The entire Bethel arrangement, the entire CO arrangement, the cars, the insurance, the administrative costs, they are all fraudulent and criminal when the WTBT$ claims them to be "God's will". The reason the people in the JWBorg donate is because they think it is in harmony with God's will. The Bethel arrangement is antichrist. It is in opposition to what is holy, just like the other clergy arrangements in Christendom that elevate and pay for clergy.

  
  

  The very idea of having a "non-profit" status in order to avoid paying taxes shows that any "religious" organization seeking such status is fraudulent when they claim to represent God.

  
  

  God knows they are criminals, even if the government hasn't figured it out yet. Jesus will expose them for what they are. He's done it before. When he takes the throne in heaven, he will clean out the house, first thing. He'll clean the Devil out of heaven, then he'll clean all those devils out of the congregations. All those so-called "religious" organizations claiming "tax-exempt" status for their fraudulent hypocritical religious businesses will be exposed and removed.