MADISON, Wisconsin (LifeSiteNews) — The Wisconsin Supreme Court has ordered that the Catholic Charities Bureau of Wisconsin’s tax-exempt status be recognized and honored, quashing left-wing state Attorney General Josh Kaul’s attempt to strip it, even in light of the U.S. Supreme Court having resolved the issue.
Back in June, the nation’s highest court ruled unanimously that Catholic Charities Bureau, an affiliate of the Diocese of Superior, Wisconsin, should not have been denied an exemption from the state’s unemployment insurance tax, finding the state’s highest court had erred in ruling the Bureau’s social service work did not qualify as primarily religious in nature.
“When the government distinguishes among religions based on theological differences in their provision of services, it imposes a denominational preference that must satisfy the highest level of judicial scrutiny,” normally-left-wing Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote. In doing so, it violates the First Amendment’s religious protections.
Following that ruling, however, Kaul returned to court arguing for the religious exemption to be ended for everyone.
“Discrimination is cured by restoring equal treatment, which can be accomplished here in one of two ways: either by expanding the statutory exemption to groups like Catholic Charities or else by eliminating it altogether,” he argued in October.
“Having violated the Constitution, Wisconsin cannot now act as if its new proposal has nothing to do with that history or that it has not targeted Catholic Charities for exclusion from the very beginning,” responded the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.
On December 15, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled against Kaul, ordering, in “light of the Supreme Court’s holding,” that the matter be remanded back to the lower courts “with direction to declare Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc. and its sub-entities involved in this case eligible for the religious purposes exemption to unemployment taxation.”
“You’d think Wisconsin would take a 9-0 Supreme Court loss as a hint to stop digging,” reacted Becket vice president and senior counsel Eric Rassbach. “But apparently Attorney General Kaul and his staff are gluttons for punishment. Thankfully, the Wisconsin Supreme Court put an end to the state’s tomfoolery and confirmed that Catholic Charities is entitled to the exemption it already won.”
Wisconsin under Kaul and Democrat Gov. Tony Evers remains a hostile political environment for religious Americans and social conservatives, with the state’s highest court being far less supportive when not given clear direction from the nation’s highest court. In July, the justices struck down Wisconsin’s 176-year-old abortion ban, enabling Planned Parenthood to resume abortions in the state. Wisconsin has also declared it will not comply with the Trump administration’s rules against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in public education, even at the risk of losing federal tax dollars.
