We will tax the churches! All this, in a non-discriminatory way, without considering faith or level of political commitment. In our nation, there are often calls for the federal government to revoke the tax-exempt status of churches. The most common arguments made in favor of taxing churches are that the exemptions deny the government important sources of revenue to pay its bills and that many churches abuse their tax-exempt status by violating IRS guidelines that prohibit them from engaging in political activities (Cavalli, Dimitri). Other topics discuss whether the exemptions constitute a subsidy to religion and whether the exemptions violate the separation of church and state. While the desire to tax churches is not new, the issue of religious tax preference is especially relevant now as the number of Americans living outside of any religious tradition continues to grow. Is it fair to tax all Americans to subsidize religious institutions that only some Americans use? In the United States, churches received an official tax exemption in 1894, and have been unofficially exempt from taxes since the founding of the country. All 50 states and the District of Columbia exempt churches from paying property tax (Churches and Taxes-procon.org). Tax exemption for churches can be traced back to the Roman Empire, when Constantine granted the Christian church a complete exemption from all forms of taxation following its conversion to Christianity (Churches and Taxes-procon.org). Even church property used for religious purposes was exempt from tax in evil England, on the rationale that the church relieved the state of certain governmental functions and therefore deserved to benefit from them in return. The English charitable uses statute formed the basis of the Ameri...... middle of paper ......re Churches Making America Poor?" Newsweek. Np, October 25, 2013. Web. November 12, 2013. Beres, Derek. “Taxing churches.” Web, Nov. 16, 2013. “Churches and taxes.” - Churches and taxes-procon.org" ProConorg Titles, nd Web. November 5, 2013. Matthews, Dylan Billions a Year." Washingtonpost.com. Np, 22 August 2013. Web. 8 November 2013. Rowe, Richard. “US District Court Judge Rules Religious Tax Exemption Unconstitutional!” Americans Against the Tea Party. Np, November 22, 2013. 2013. Web. November 22, 2013. Stanhouse. "Churches are exempt from taxes as a matter of constitutional right".. 2013.