FRANKFORT, KY – On April 1, the Kentucky General Assembly gave final passage to HB 757, the biannual revenue bill that runs parallel with the biannual budget bills. In their committee substitute, the Senate A&R Committee included language removing the requirement for churches to collect sales and use taxes on church ministry activities. This language remained in the final version that the House and Senate both passed. HB 757 now heads to the governor’s desk.
In 2022, the General Assembly passed HB 8, which applied the sales and use tax to several services, including recreational leagues. While intended to help expedite the elimination of the income tax, this bill had the unfortunate effect of requiring churches to charge and collect sales and use taxes on some church ministries, including recreational and outreach ministries.
Since pastors made The Family Foundation and the General Assembly aware of this issue in 2023, Rep. James Tipton has filed legislation every session to repeal the sales and use tax collection requirement on church ministries. This session, his HB 101 had 53 total sponsors (see below) and was mostly the language included in HB 757. We are thankful for his leadership on this issue over the years and for the leadership of several Senators who ensured that the church sales tax language made it into the revenue bill, including: Sen. Chris McDaniel, Sen. Amanda Mays Bledsoe, Sen. Steve Rawlings, Sen. Gex Williams, Sen. Max Wise, Sen. Robby Mills, and others.
“Our nation’s Founders understood that religion plays a vital role in our communities and in our society. We are incredibly grateful that the General Assembly has removed this burden on Kentucky’s churches. For too long, church ministries were effectively forced to be tax collectors for the Government simply for serving their communities and doing ministry that God had called them to. With this repeal of the sales tax collection, churches will be free to move forward to pursue their religious, charitable, and educational missions free of unnecessary government interference,” said David Walls, Executive Director of The Family Foundation.
The Family Foundation’s church outreach coordinator John Raizor added, “I am so thankful for the Kentucky Baptist Convention, pastors, and volunteers from across the state being salt and light and letting their voices be heard. The church sales tax wouldn’t have been repealed without their efforts.”
The Family Foundation would also like to thank all the House sponsors of HB 101:
Rep. James Tipton, Rep. Shane Baker, Rep. Kim Banta, Rep. Ryan Bivens, Rep. John Blanton, Rep. Steve Bratcher, Rep. Randy Bridges, Rep. Emily Callaway, Rep. Josh Calloway, Rep. Jennifer Decker, Rep. Steven Doan, Rep. Myron Dossett, Rep. Ryan Dotson, Rep. Robert Duvall, Rep. Daniel Fister, Rep. Patrick Flannery, Rep. Chris Freeland, Rep. Chris Fugate, Rep. Al Gentry, Rep. Deanna Frazier Gordon, Rep. Peyton Griffee, Rep. Daniel Grossberg, Rep. Vanessa Grossl, Rep. David Hale, Rep. Tony Hampton, Rep. Mark Hart, Rep. John Hodgson, Rep. Kim Holloway, Rep. Thomas Huff, Rep. Mary Beth Imes, Rep. DJ Johnson, Rep. Chris Lewis, Rep. Derek Lewis, Rep. Matt Lockett, Rep. Savannah Maddox, Rep. Candy Massaroni, Rep. Bobby McCool, Rep. Kimberly Poore Moser, Rep. JT Payne, Rep. “Sarge” Pollock, Rep. Marianne Proctor, Rep. Felicia Rabourn, Rep. Steve Riley, Rep. TJ Roberts, Rep. Tom Smith, Rep. Ashley Tackett Laferty, Rep. Nancy Tate, Rep. Walker Thomas, Rep. Aaron Thompson, Rep. Timmy Truett, Rep. Bill Wesley, Rep. Mitch Whitaker, and Rep. Wade Williams.
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The Family Foundation is the leading Christian public policy organization in Kentucky and stands for Kentucky families and the Biblical values that make them strong. Learn more at kentuckyfamily.org.