Found. of Human Understanding v. US, 09-5129

Found. of Human Understanding v. US, 09-5129, concerned a challenge to the United States Court of Federal Claims' decision that a nonprofit organization did  not qualify as a "church" under section 170(b)(1)(A)(i) of the Internal Revenue Code for the period from January 1, 1998 through December 31, 2000.

In affirming the decision, the court held that the record supports the trial court's finding that the in-person services conducted during the years in question were merely incidental to plaintiff's primary purposes, and were therefore insufficient to demonstrate that the organization was a "church" for tax purposes.  The court also held that disseminating religious information, whether through print or broadcast media, does not fulfill the associational role required to qualify as a "church" under section 170.

Related Resource:

• Full text of Found. of Human Understanding v. US, 09-5129