Revision: March 26, 2025, 12:58 p.m.
Sen. Abbas, Dist 22
March 25, 2025
2025-1378s
06/09
Floor Amendment to SB 291
Amend the bill by replacing section 1 with the following:
1 Property Taxes; Real Estate and Personal Property Tax Exemption. Amend RSA 72:23, III to read as follows:
III. Houses of public worship, parish houses, church parsonages occupied by their pastors or by employees of the church, convents, monasteries, buildings and the lands [appertaining to them] on the lot of the church, convent, or monastery owned, used, and occupied directly for religious training, including religious residential programs, or housing used for other religious purposes by any regularly recognized and constituted denomination, creed or sect, organized, incorporated or legally doing business in this state and the personal property used by them for the purposes for which they are established.
(a) "Religious residential programs" shall mean programs operated by religious organizations, designed to provide education, work experience, or personal development to participating residents in accordance with the doctrine or creed of the religious organizations.
(b) Housing used for religious purposes may include rental units provided as part of the religious mission of the church, on a church lot owned by a recognized and constituted denomination, creed, or sect, organized, incorporated, or legally doing business in this state, and wholly owned by the religious organization. The term "units," as used in this subparagraph, shall have the same meaning as "rental units" as defined under RSA 540:1-a, III. These units shall not be used for short-term rental purposes as defined under RSA 48-A:1, V.
(c) On or before November 1 of each year, the owner of rental units under subparagraph (b) shall enter into a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement with the governing body or board of assessors of the host municipality to defray the costs of municipal, non-utility services. If no mutual agreement is reached, the amount paid on December 1 of each year shall not exceed 10 percent of the municipal tax rate applied to the assessed value of all tax-exempt housing under subparagraph (b).
2025-1378s
AMENDED ANALYSIS
This bill:
I. Adds tax exemptions for church parsonages occupied by designated church employees, buildings used for religious training and residential programs, and other religious housing.
II. Defines housing used for religious purposes, including rental units provided as part of a church's religious mission, as tax-exempt housing subject to payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreements.
III. Permits municipal regulations of religious land and structures, provided the regulations are objective, apply equally to all uses, and do not substantially burden religious exercise.