Raelians win sales tax appeal, allege religious discrimination by State of Nevada
LAS VEGAS, May 31 – By a 4-3 decision of the Nevada Tax Commission, the United States Raelian Movement (USRM) and an auxiliary organization have each won their appeal for state sales tax exemption in Nevada, according to Thomas Kaenzig, the USRM’s western regional Guide.
“The state initially revoked our sales tax exemption when Nova Distribution, our publishing arm, applied for its own exemption,” Kaenzig said in a statement released this morning. “We applied last fall for sales tax exemption for the Nova entity so we wouldn’t have to pay sales tax on our book orders. But when the state declined Nova’s application, they saw fit to investigate the USRM’s status as well, and they wound up revoking the existing USRM exemption. It was a double whammy for us, and it was blatantly unfair and wrong, so naturally we appealed.”
Kaenzig said the state’s main argument was that the USRM doesn’t have an actual physical church or building where members meet on a regular basis.
“That’s a guideline that clearly discriminates against any small religion that can’t afford its own place of worship,” Kaenzig said. “It also discriminates against any religion that, for whatever reason, simply doesn’t want to have a consistent physical meeting spot.”
“We just received a letter confirming the final ruling,” Kaenzig said. “Both the USRM and Nova Distribution are now sales tax exempt in Nevada. But more importantly, we have just set a precedent for other small religious groups suffering from this sort of discrimination. The USRM is a recognized official religion under U.S. federal law. Since having a physical building isn’t a requirement for that distinction, it shouldn’t be a requirement at the state level either."
