Wisconsin Supreme Court to decide if Catholic charity is actually religious

During the week of Sept. 10, the Wisconsin State Supreme Court will hear oral arguments and decide if the Catholic Charities Bureau will have to continue paying into the state’s unemployment services. The organization, a part of the Diocese of Superior, provides services to help the disabled, the elderly and the poor — regardless of their faith.

According to Wisconsin state law, the state provides financial assistance to people who have lost their job through no fault of their own. Certain nonprofits can opt out of paying into the state’s unemployment system — including those operated for religious purposes.

The Catholic Charities Bureau (CCB) requested to stop paying into the state’s unemployment system, and instead wanted to enroll into Wisconsin Bishops’ Church Unemployment Pay Program.

In February of this year, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals sided with the state’s Labor and Industry Review Commission and ruled that CCB’s charitable organization does not provide services that are primarily religious in nature. Therefore, CCB had to keep paying into the state’s unemployment system instead of the Catholic Church’s compensation program.

Attorneys for CCB argue that the Diocese of Superior created and continues to operate the organization and is carrying out its religious mission by offering health care, housing, childcare services and employment opportunities for individuals and families in need, regardless of their religious affiliation.

CCB attorneys say the appeals court violated the separation of church and state by “ignoring the Catholic Church’s determination regarding how to structure their own religious ministry.”