Low-Income Housing and the Charitable Exemption

Abstract

INTRODUCTION|In the recently decided case of Pittman v. Sarpy County Board of Equalization, the Supreme Court of Nebraska, in a unanimous opinion, held that the Tax Equalization and Review Commission properly denied tax exempt status to Mercy Crestview Village ("Mercy"), the owner of an apartment complex located in Sarpy County, Nebraska. While there were procedural issues raised by the appeal of this case to the supreme court, the focus of this article will be upon the ruling of the Pittman court that the use of the property by the applicant was not "charitable" under the governing laws of the State of Nebraska pertaining to real property tax exemption. More particularly, this article will scrutinize and re-examine the Pittman court's re-affirmation of the "well established" rule that, as stated by the court, "low-income housing is not a charitable use of property."...