Baptist church is closed, but it gets a tax bill

The Boston Globe reports:

The town of Whitman has sent a local Baptist church its first property tax bill in its 188-year history, surprising and dismaying members of the nonprofit corporation overseeing the recently shuttered house of worship.

Whitman officials say they’re simply taking a page from the playbook of several Boston-area cities and towns, including Framingham, Natick, and Scituate, that are already taxing closed Catholic churches in their communities.

Whitman Town Administrator Frank Lynam said officials review all local properties, both on and off the tax rolls, each spring. This year, they determined that the First Baptist Church of Whitman was no longer in use as a place of worship and had become a taxable asset.

“Simple ownership by a tax-exempt organization isn’t enough,’’ Lynam said. “It’s about use. And the church is not being used for worship.’’

Ouch.