Supreme Court Denies Church’s Property Tax Takings Challenge

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a church’s appeal challenging a Michigan county’s tax foreclosure process and seeking relief allowing taxpayers to bring their claims in federal court and avoid state tribunals.

The high court denied Wayside Church’s petition for review Oct. 30, ending the church’s calls to retrieve the $189,250 Van Buren County kept above the taxes, penalties, and fees the church owed to the county when the county foreclosed on its property (Wayside Church v. Van Buren Cty., Mich., U.S., No. 17-88, cert. denied 10/30/17).

The church and two other property owners claimed the county’s ...