Forward Community Investments seeks to promote legislation that will strengthen the ability of nonprofits to do what they do best: provide affordable housing, teach the illiterate to read, build community centers in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, and provide quality affordable healthcare.

Wisconsin nonprofit property tax exemption
Recap of July 15 Workshop - Preparing for Property Tax Assessment

On July 15, Forward Community Investments hosted a workshop on how nonprofit organizations can prepare for possible property tax assessment. We were fortunate to have Sharon McCabe of the James A. Graaskamp School for Real Estate at UW-Madison and Melissa Auchard Scholz of Scholz Nonprofit Law presented on how property tax assessment works, and how nonprofits can be proactive in the process of being assessed. As a former assessor, Sharon provided information on how the assessment process and appeals process works. You can download her handout by clicking here. Melissa provided information on the statutes, what is included and what is not. You can download that by clicking here.

UPDATE: June 18, 2009
State Senate Approves Budget with Affordable Housing Exemption Included

On Wednesday, the Senate passed its version of the state budget and, in so doing, restored the language on propety tax exemptions prepared by the Joint Finance Committee that had been previously removed in the Assembly's verions of the budget. The only changes made by the Senate to the Joint Finance language included the following:

(1) Lowered the maximum valuation for "retirement homes for the aged" from 160% of the average equalized value of residential property in the county;

(2) Required that the value of common areas in "retirement homes for the aged" be included in calculating the value of such housing; and

(3) Required that "retirement homes for the aged" be owned by a benevolent association.

The Senate and Assembly will now meet in conference committee to negotiate their different verions of the budget bill. If the language in the Senate version of the budget is retained and it is signed into law by the Governor, property tax exemption for lower-income rental housing owned by nonprofit organizations will be protected and the rent use restrictions will be removed.

We ask that you contact members of the Assembly to ask them to approve the Senate language in the conference committee and in their chamber regarding property tax exemptions. Following full Assembly approval, you can call the Governor and urge him to keep the language in the budget bill.

To find out which member of the State Assembly represents you, visit the Wisconsin State Legislature website.

But you should contact the Assembly as soon as possible; the conference committee will begin meeting within days. We will continue to keep you posted.

What's missing is tax exempt language for certain nonprofit-owned non-residential property. It remains at risk of being taxed. Principally, this includes any nonprofit-owned real estate that is leased to other nonprofits (not for residential use) and that has been exempt in the past.

For a more comprehensive history of the issue, please download this memo, courtesy of Timothy Radelet at Foley & Lardner.