Catholic Group Gets Supreme Court Hearing on Tax Exemption Bid

The US Supreme Court will take up a new test of religious rights, agreeing to consider a bid by a charitable arm of the Catholic Church for an exemption from Wisconsin’s unemployment tax.

The justices will review a Wisconsin Supreme Court decision that said Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Superior didn’t qualify for a carve-out for religious organizations in the state’s unemployment compensation system.

The case could have a wide impact on state unemployment systems, which use taxes on employers to pay benefits to people out of work. Catholic Charities says 47 states have laws similar to Wisconsin’s. The ...