Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette Inc. v. Board of Assessors of Attleboro
476 Mass. 690
| Mass. | 2017Background
- Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette (a Massachusetts nonprofit and U.S. national Catholic shrine) owned 199 acres in Attleboro and paid $92,292.98 in property taxes for fiscal year 2012, then sought abatement under G. L. c. 59, § 5, Clause Eleventh (houses of religious worship).
- Appellate Tax Board divided the property into eight portions; it found the church, chapels, monastery, and retreat center exempt, but treated the welcome center as 60% exempt/40% taxable and found the maintenance building, a former convent leased as a safe house, and a wildlife sanctuary fully taxable.
- The welcome center contains a video about La Salette (religious instruction), a cafeteria used by pilgrims (and as a Monday soup kitchen), a bistro, a gift shop, and spaces used for lectures and fundraising events; it is also rented occasionally to public, nonprofit, and private users.
- The maintenance building stores Festival of Lights displays, gift shop inventory, and maintenance vehicles used on the Shrine grounds.
- The former convent was leased to a nonprofit operating a permanent, exclusive safe house for battered women; the wildlife sanctuary was subject to a conservation easement and managed by Massachusetts Audubon with public access and exclusive management rights.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the welcome center is exempt under Clause Eleventh | Welcome center functions (video, cafeteria, gift shop, lectures) are religious worship/instruction or connected with it, so entire center is exempt | Portions (cafeteria, bistro, gift shop, fundraising uses, rentals) are nonreligious; apportionment/taxation of nonreligious use is appropriate | Entire welcome center exempt: apply dominant-purpose test to each portion; incidental/occasional nonprofit use protected, but assessor may not apportion within a portion based on estimated secular use |
| Whether maintenance building is exempt | Storage of lights, gift shop inventory, and vehicles is connected with Shrine worship and support functions, so exempt | Building used for storage/maintenance not directly for worship/instruction; taxable | Maintenance building exempt: dominant purpose connected to religious worship/instruction |
| Whether former convent (safe house) is exempt | Safe house furthers Shrine’s religious mission and is incidental to overall religious use; should be exempt under Clause Eleventh | Safe house is a permanent, exclusive charitable use by a nonprofit and thus not a portion used for worship/instruction; taxable under Clause Eleventh (though possibly Clause Third if filings made) | Safe house taxable under Clause Eleventh: permanent, exclusive nonreligious use appropriated away from worship; Shrine could have sought Clause Third exemption but failed filing requirements |
| Whether wildlife sanctuary is exempt | Sanctuary used for meditative walks and ecospirituality; conservation easement and limited Shrine access show religious connection; should be exempt | Easement granted exclusive management and public access to Audubon, creating a permanent, exclusive charitable use distinct from worship; taxable | Wildlife sanctuary taxable under Clause Eleventh: dominant purpose is charitable conservation managed by Audubon; may have qualified under Clause Third if proper filings made |
Key Cases Cited
- New England Forestry Found., Inc. v. Assessors of Hawley, 468 Mass. 138 (recognition that exemption statutes are strictly construed and burden on claimant)
- Assessors of Framingham v. First Parish in Framingham, 329 Mass. 212 (articulates dominant-purpose test; exemption covers portions "connected with" worship)
- Proprietors of the South Congregational Meetinghouse in Lowell v. Lowell, 1 Met. 538 (early precedent that exemption applies only to portions used for worship or connected purposes)