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Pasadena, CA – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected Michael and Marla Sklars’ argument that the were entitled to claim deductions for tuition and fees paid to their children’s Orthodox Jewish day schools, they say the IRS reserves only for members of the Church of Scientology.
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The case stems from an agreement the IRS reached with the church to allow Scientologists to deduct at least 80% of the fees paid for “religious training and services.”
The Sklars took similar deductions for religious education on their returns, but the IRS rejected their deductions.
The government lawyer asserted that the Sklars were not “similarly situated” to the Scientologists because the couple was seeking to deduct fees related to basic education for children and not the kind of training Scientologists undergo.
The Ninth Circuit rejected all of the Sklars arguments, because “[t]o conclude otherwise would be tantamount to rewriting the Tax Code, disregarding Supreme Court precedent, only to reach a conclusion directly at odds with the Establishment Clause — all in the name of the Establishment Clause,” the court said.
The court in its ruling also said that the couple paid only for their children’s education and had not shown that any of the tuition was used by the schools as a gift.
The Justice Department, which represented the IRS, says the ruling shows that religious schooling is not tax deductible.
“We are pleased that the IRS’s denial of the Sklars’ claimed deductions was upheld by the Tax Court and the Ninth Circuit,” said Nathan J. Hochman, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “While taxpayers may choose to enroll their children in religious schools, the Tax Code should not subsidize this choice.”
Please advise the differences from the Sciencetologists regarding the Tax Code.
Simple: Yeshivos should send two tuition bills: one for limudei Kodesh which should be tax deductible; one for limudei chol which should not.
Then class-action sue the Government.
how many of us have our tax dollars going to public schools that we don’t use? someone should cut us a break somewhere!
And yet when someone is caught “cheating” on his taxes, in other words gives the tax man less than he demands, we have all the commenters here screaming about “theft” and “dishonesty” and “dina demalchusa”. Get this through your heads: no government has the right to take money from one person to give it to another. That is not dina demalchusa, it is theft pure and simple. Chamsonuso demalchuso. And a government that is not mashveh midosov, in this case that allows Scientologists to deduct this religious expense, but doesn’t allow the same to yidden, has no right to any taxes.
#2, it’s not just for the limudei kodesh. The kids are learning limudei chol in a Jewish school and not a public school because of religious requirements, so why shouldn’t that be deductible? If not for the requirements of tznius, etc., the Sklars would send their kids to public school for limudei chol, wouldn’t they? Why not? They send them to a Jewish school because all subjects (if they must be taught at all) have to be taught al taharas hakodesh, in a holy environment. That’s a religious expense and should be deductible. But they won’t allow it because they know we’re suckers.
Appeal to the Supreme Court.
The decision as quoted does not seem to explain any meaningful difference between the Yeshivas and the Church of Scientology (but I have not read it).
we could all enroll our kids in public school for next year…maybe when they see that hundreds of thousands of children at a cost of over 14,000 each (last i heard it costs to educate a ny public school child) are enrolled, they’ll change their minds…otherwise we can get out of this anti-semitic place and pay attention to what Hashem is telling us… we’re really not welcome here or anywhere (even EY) but at least its home, its Hashems home!
The tax code allows a deduction for the learning of a new trade. What do the scientoligists learn that is considered a trade and what is new about it? If you are a garbage man and you are learning to become an accountant then that money is tax deductible. Or if you are a grabage man and you are advancing in your career then the money you pay to learn how to more efficiently put garbage in a trash compacter is deductible. How is the scientoligist learning deductible and what is the parallel with yeshiva tuition?
Thank you to the sklars for fighting for all of us. I agree with #2 . Also they should appeal to the supreme court. speaking of appeals where can we chip in to the cost.
FYI, if the Jewish community could muster the achdut, we would all register our kids for public school next year–I mean all, as in all of BP, all of Williamsburg, all of Flatbush. Board of Ed’s website already shows that all the schools in Brooklyn are running at above 100% capacity. If we all registered our kids, the Board of Ed would be forced to admit that it does not actually have the capacity to educate our kids. Private school tuition is not deductible because of the notion that a public education is available, and it is our problem that we don’t make use of it. If we force them to admit that a public education is actually not available for our kids, then we’d force a new paradigm. The only option would be be for the Board of Ed to pay private vendors (i.e. private schools) to provide educational services. Enter the yeshivas, stage right.
I believe this case will make it to the US Supreme Court because now it cuts right into the 14th Amendment Due Process clause.
The Ninth circuit’s statement that “[t]o conclude otherwise would be tantamount to rewriting the Tax Code”, shifts the burden of the problem on the statue itself, making it unconstitutional.
Every law has to be a) equal to every citizen and b) clearly defined. According to this ruling it is lacking both.
Well, for those in New York, you’d have to change the state constitution to be able to use state or local funds for religious education. Article 11, Section 3, specifically forbids it.
To Dave #13 :
1) It’s probably been done in the past.
2) at least allow for tax deduction
The IRS argued that the fees the Sklars wanted to deduct related to “basic education of children” and not the special “training” that Scientologists undergo. Would tuition for an older Yeshiva Gedola student perhaps fall into the category of special “training” rather than a child’s “basic education”? Has this been tried?
Jeffrey Zuckerman Esq, the same attorney who represented (pro bono) the Brody family in the case of Motl Brody zl, has been working tirelessly on this case, free of charge, for this family, and for all families who pay yeshiva tuition. He was found by Agudath Israel. He deserves our community’s thanks. However, it was clear that even though he found an amazing precedent in that Scientology was given preferential treatment, he could not convince the judges to overturn the tax code.
Good point Awacs: Here is something I found in goobling “irs scientology” “Scientology agreed to drop the 2,200 lawsuits it had brought against the IRS and IRS officials, and to stop helping church members in filing similar lawsuits.”
The Sklars should start a fund to help them drive this further. I will be the first one to donate.
Reply to Dave #16
Reply to #14
YY Says:
“ To Dave #13 :
1) It’s probably been done in the past.
2) at least allow for tax deduction ”
1. It is illegal in New York State. Outright, black letter law. In fact, here it is:
§ 3. Neither the state nor any subdivision thereof, shall use its
property or credit or any public money, or authorize or permit either to be
used, directly or indirectly, in aid or maintenance, other than for
examination or inspection, of any school or institution of learning wholly
or in part under the control or direction of any religious denomination, or
in which any denominational tenet or doctrine is taught, but the
legislature may provide for the transportation of children to and from any
school or institution of learning.
My point was that the constitution has probably been amended in the past:)
2. The State could do an income tax deduction for private schooling, if it chose to. It is unlikely to, given the state of the budget.
If the public school system all of a sudden get’s clogged with 100,000 jewish pupils, it will likely consider this trade-off.
The Government would love to see all the alternative schools closed for good. They tried in the 1950’s but lost in Supreme Court (Amish case: Yoder vs. Wisconsin).
Failing in that, the Government now imposes hardships on families who schoose alternate schools by making them pay double–taxes for public schools and their own private tuition.
This is being done on purpose. The Government wants every child to be indoctrinated in the Liberal/Atheist ideology–“No child will be left behind.”
Didn’t I read on another thread that gedolim taught us to keep a low profile in golus? Didn’t someone cite Reb Elchonan Wasserman HY”D?
Isn’t it true that we must not bring attention to ourselves? It’s not the yiddishe way?
That we live in a goyish country and cannot have expectations? Don’t expect to be treated equally?
That we cannot mix religion (“church”) with State?
That making demands is a “chillul hashem” and antagonozed the goyim?
OH…those comments were written against chanukah menoras in public squares…NEVER MIND!