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Reply to "Man Who Refuses to Pay Taxes Until Abortion Is Defunded Wins Huge Court Victory"

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Pertinent Supreme Court cases:

Adams v. Commissioner, 170 F.3d 173 (3d Cir. 1999) – the 3rd Circuit affirmed tax deficiencies and penalties for failure to file tax returns and pay tax, holding that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act did not require that the federal income tax accommodate Adams’ religious beliefs that payment of taxes to fund the military is against the will of God, and that her beliefs did not constitute reasonable cause for purposes of the penalties.

United States v. Lee, 455 U.S. 252, 260 (1982) – the Supreme Court held that the broad public interest in maintaining a sound tax system is of such importance that religious beliefs in conflict with the payment of taxes provide no basis for refusing to pay, stating “The tax system could not function if denominations were allowed to challenge the tax system because tax payments were spent in a manner that violates their religious belief.”

Jenkins v. Commissioner, 483 F.3d 90 (2d Cir. 2007) – upholding the imposition of a $5,000 frivolous return penalty against the taxpayer, the 2nd Circuit held that the collection of tax revenues for expenditures that offended the religious beliefs of individual taxpayers did not violate the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, or the Ninth Amendment.

United States v. Indianapolis Baptist Temple, 224 F.3d 627 (7th Cir. 2000) – the 7th Circuit rejected defendant’s Free Exercise challenge to the federal employment tax as those laws were not restricted to the defendant or other religion-related employers generally, and there was no indication that they were enacted for the purpose of burdening religious practices.

United States v. Ramsey, 992 F.2d 831 (8th Cir. 1993) – stating that Ramsey “has no First Amendment right to avoid federal income taxes on religious grounds,” the 8th Circuit rejected his argument that filing federal income tax returns and paying federal income taxes violates his pacifist religious beliefs.  

United States v. Peister, 631 F.2d. 658 (10th Cir. 1980) – the 10th Circuit found Peister’s First Amendment right to freedom of religion was not violated and rejecting his argument that he was exempt from income tax based on his vow of poverty after he became minister of a church he formed.

Salzer v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2014-188, 108 T.C.M. (CCH) 284 (September 15, 2014) – the court found Salzer’s justification for not paying taxes because he objected to the “socialist” policies of the government frivolous, holding that “[t]he legal duty to file a return exists independent of a taxpayer's personal political, economic, social, or religious convictions.


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