On Tuesday afternoon, I joined a couple dozen other secularists outside Kelowna City Hall to call on the City to revisit its religious property tax exemption handouts.

For several months, our affiliate the Kelowna Atheists, Skeptics and Humanists Association (KASHA), together with Advocacy Canada, has been calling on council to revisit its permissive tax exemptions for places of worship.

The groups have documented how these exemptions force homeowners and local businesses to shoulder an extra million dollars in additional property taxes every year. This is despite the fact few of these organizations are welcoming and inclusive of 2SLGBTQ+ residents and many send significant funds out of the city to international evangelizing missions.

KASHA has called on City Council to pause the five-year exemptions that are scheduled to be approved this fall and to implement a new policy that would ensure local funds support local priorities.

Unfortunately, Council has not listened to their calls. They even refused to let KASHA make their case at a council meeting.

So, we took the message to the streets and held a rally outside City Hall before the July 22 council meeting.

BC Humanist Association

Today we joined Kelowna Atheists, Skeptics, and Humanists Association and Advocacy Canada outside Kelowna City Hall demanding an end to the automatic property tax exemptions enjoyed by places of...

Between 20 and 30 people attended the rally, with reporters from Kelowna Capital News, iNFOnews and Castanet on hand to cover the event.

You can watch the full presentations from KASHA's Nina George, myself and Advocacy Canada's Amber Hall on KASHA's YouTube channel or Facebook.

Follow the Church Money Kelowna City Hall Rally Why are Kelowna taxpayers paying for so many religious properties (50+) when many of them donate so much money outside of Kelowna? Why are Kelowna taxpayers indirectly funding exclusion, foreign missions, an

Follow the Church Money Kelowna City Hall Rally Why are Kelowna taxpayers paying for so many religious properties (50+) when many of them donate so much money outside of Kelowna? Why are Kelowna...

While this rally didn't change the City's policy on its own, it was encouraging to see so many people out on a sunny afternoon and to hear so much support from those walking and driving by.

Read more about the campaign

Importantly, this event feeds into a broader conversation that's happening across Canada as more and more people question the assumption that religion is a public benefit. In our own work on the issue, we've seen more communities begin to revisit their property tax exemption policies across British Columbia. Federally, the House of Commons Finance Committee recently supported our recommendation to end the privileged status of religion in charity law.

Help us continue this work by becoming a member or donating today.

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