SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS/SFGate) -- San Francisco’s Tax Assessor and the Archdiocese of San Francisco are going head-to-head over property transfers, which the Tax Assessor says are being sent to different nonprofit organizations in order to shield them from taxes.
Both sides acknowledge that there was some type of transfer of property, including some of the church's most famous, such as Mission Delores, Old St. Mary's Cathedral and St. Francis of Assisi, as well as empty lots and commercial land throughout the city. The dispute, however, lies in how the transfer took place.
KCBS’ Mark Seelig reports
Assessor-Recorder Phil Ting says nonprofit groups, like the Archdiocese, are exempt from property and federal income taxes but are subject to property transfer taxes. He admits that the law has been vague, but now his office is enforcing it.
“We had a property owner, they brought in documents and we made a decision. That’s what we do with every single property owner in town,” said Ting.
Ting says the tax bill could be upwards of $15 million, one of the largest in city history.
Maurice Healy, a spokesman for the Archdiocese, says they should be exempt from any transfer tax because these properties never changed ownership.
“This is unprecedented. Mr. Ting admits that the city is cash-strapped and he’s looking anywhere and everywhere to get revenue. What he’s attempting to do is to politicize and sensationalize this matter.”
The issue will come to a head when both sides meet during an appeals hearing, set for June 16th. Both sides say they will appeal if they come out on the losing end.
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