“Young man, young man, what do you wanna be?” – YMCA, The Village People. The YMCA is a Christian organization and sought religious and charitable use tax exemptions from property taxes. The exemption applications were eventually denied. The Colo. Const. provides for both exemptions, as does CRS 39-2-117, 39-3-106 and 108. Each are determined by examining the property’s use, not the character of the entity. Activities of religious organizations that further their religious purposes constitute religious worship, and entities can use facilities for charitable purposes without requiring participation in entity-organized activities. In each case, the Tax Board failed to examine whether the activities furthered declared religious or charitable purposes. The court of appeals reversed, remanded and ordered the Board to apply the correct legal standards for each exemption.
http://www.courts.state.co.us/Courts/Court_Of_Appeals/Opinion/2013/07CA0422%20&%2011CA0725-PD.pdf
http://www.cobar.org/opinions/opinion.cfm?opinionid=8901&courtid=1