Correct. It’s a very common misunderstanding that nonprofits cannot have a voice in the political sphere. It was perfectly legal for the Morman church to be active in the Prop 8 debate.
It seems very likely these would be local initiatives. Confirming my understanding on Wikipedia, property tax is charged by counties and municipalities (cities). If you live in both a county and within city limits, you often pay to both. So changes in terms of who gets taxed would be at that level. 3000+ counties in the US, plus various cities.
One reason I think such movements are unlikely to gain momentum is that churches (synagogues, mosques, temples …) tend to be concentrated near their members. Where there are few members, there tend to be few churches, and therefore not much property tax revenue is at stake. Where there is a significant amount of property tax revenue at stake, presumably there are a lot of church members who would be unlikely to support the change in taxes, since churches generally get the money to pay taxes from their members.
All 50 states exempt buildings used for religious worship from property taxation. There are, however, some interesting variants on the theme:
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Some states do not exempt the grounds on which the building sits – i.e., the buuilding itself is exampt but the land, or at least the grounds surrounding the builing, are taxed.
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Some states grant exemption to the house provided for the clergyman/-men/-person(S) (parsonage, recotory, manse, etc.); others do not.
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Ancillary structures like a parochial school, picnic grounds, etc., may or may not be taxed.
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Most but not all states allow property taxation of a structure owned by the church for rental purposes (i.e., where the church is landlord to residents, businesses, etc.) Some grant exemption based on the use (e.g, if it houses a NFP, a therapist’s office, low income housing, etc.).
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New York State does not grant tax exemption to “mail order religious establishments” (.e.g, the Universal Free Life Church). I was unable to identiry if other states follow suit on this.
This is a lot more complex than I realized. Thanks for all the answers.
A serious, organized movement? Not really. Some vocal people who’d like to see it happen, sure, but nothing is imminent. Not by a long shot.
I would like to point out that some rumors of such a movement come from religious organizations themselves. It is easier to mobilize the congregation against a perceived crisis or attack. In spite of Christanity’s overwhelming dominance in the US, some Christians preach that Christianity is constantly under attack. It’s really very Orwellian. “We have always been at war…”