Court Opinion

ID: 9667936
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 01:58:04.566864+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:15:41.652976
License: Public Domain

Coleman, J.
(dissenting). Although it is agreed that tax exemption statutes are strictly construed in favor of the taxing unit, this generally accepted rule of law should not work to divert an exemption statute from its intended purpose toward meeting certain needs of society.
The facts of the case are well stated in Justice Fitzgerald’s opinion, but a few are of particular relevance to this dissent:
1. Those who may be admitted to the nonprofit church-affiliated home for the elderly, Hillcrest Terrace, must be over 65 years old. They need not be Baptists.
2. The residents have an average annual income of approximately $6,811 and plan to remain in the home for life or indefinitely. Although some have little, if any, income and others are more affluent, the home serves primarily the middle financial strata of the elderly.
3. Residents are not evicted if they cannot pay for the services rendered.
4. Some have been and purportedly will be admitted without payment of the "life lease”.
5. Limited free care is available in the nursing center to any resident needing it.
6. The Michigan Baptist Convention has guaranteed the mortgage notes.
7. The home had been operating at a sizable loss at the time of this suit, although it is intended to be self-sustaining. If self-sustaining, the residents’ fees must be adjusted higher. If the home is not tax-exempt, an estimated $55,000 annually in taxes will be added to the costs of residents. (There were 72 at the time of suit.)
*676For the tax years in issue (1971-1972), MCLA 211.7; MSA 7.7 exempted from property taxation:
"Such real estate as shall be owned and occupied by * * * benevolent, charitable, educational or scientific institutions * * * ,”1
And MCLA 211.9; MSA 7.9 exempted:
"The personal property of charitable, educational and scientific institutions * * * ”2
The relevant parts of the exemption statutes are phrased in the general terms of "charitable” or "benevolent” institutions.3 Exemption statutues are strictly construed. However, it does not follow that the construction of "benevolent”, "charitable”, "educational”, "scientific” or other general exemptions should be carved in granite. This would restrict adjustments consistent with the changing perceptions of society.
The rule of strict construction is best viewed as *677requiring that the property claimed as exempt must be clearly within the exemption statute as interpreted by the courts. The nature of that interpretation should be reasonably related to the societal need at issue. It need not be severe or harsh. For example, I would approve the view of the North Dakota Supreme Court regarding strict construction of exemption statutes. In Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society v Board of County Commissioners, Ramsey County, 219 NW2d 900, 905 (ND, 1974), that Court stated:
" 'The theory that the rule requiring strict construction of a tax exemption statute demands that the narrowest possible meaning should be given to words descriptive of the objects of it would establish too severe a standard. A liberal and not a harsh or strained construction is to be given to the terms "educational,” "religious,” and "charitable” in order that the true intent of the constitutional and statutory provisions may be realized. The judicial interpretation of such statute should always be reasonable.’ ”
The ultimate question which must be answered is: What factors should exist for designation of an institution as charitable or benevolent?
I believe that Michigan should follow the lead of other states and examine two criteria: (1) nonprofit status; and (2) beneficial interest to society.
A charitable or benevolent institution must be a nonprofit operation. However, the charging of fees equal to costs does not negate a nonprofit status.
In Fredericks Home for the Aged v San Diego County, 35 Cal 2d 789, 793; 221 P2d 68, 70-71 (1950), the California Supreme Court stated:
"So the charge of fees by such an institution as a home for the aged will not necessarily prevent its classification as charitable if such sums 'go to pay the *678expenses of operation and not to the profit of the founders or shareholders,’ for all persons may 'under certain conditions be proper objects of charity.’
”[T]he controlling consideration in determining whether an institution such as plaintiff should be classifed as a charitable one is not whether a few or all of the recipients of its beneñts may make reasonable contributions toward defraying the cost of such beneñts, but whether such contributions as are made do not exceed what is required for the maintenance of the institution at a reasonable standard and are devoted to the purposes for which the institution was founded, which purposes, in the absence of the required contributions, would clearly be deemed to be charitable.” (Emphasis added.)
Although the elderly here concerned have varying degrees of wealth, Fifield Manor v Los Angeles County, 188 Cal App 2d 1, 20; 10 Cal Rptr 242 (1961)4 is applicable. The California Court of Appeals stated:
"In the light of these authorities it seems clear that a home for the aged which caters to wealthy persons and furnishes them those services and care needed by the old and infirm, rich or poor, does not cease to be a charitable institution so long as its charges do not yield more than actual cost of operation; that it does cease to have that status when the occupants pay more than the cost to the home, thus resulting in a profit and converting it into a noncharitable institution.”
I can say without reservation that plaintiff is a nonprofit organization.
*679Discussion of the second criterion might best be understood by first looking at what is not important for the charitable and benevolent designation. First, charity and benevolence are not limited to relief of poverty:
"The concept of charity is not confined to the relief of the needy and destitute, for 'aged people require care and attention apart from financial assistance, and the supply of this care and attention is as much a charitable and benevolent purpose as the relief of their financial wants.’ ”
Frederieka, supra, at 792, quoting Estate of Henderson, 17 Cal 2d 853, 857; 112 P2d 605, 607 (1941).
" 'Relief of poverty is not a condition of charitable assistance. If the benefit conferred has a sufficiently widespread social value, a charitable purpose exists ***.”’
Fifield, supra, at 11-12, quoting Henderson, supra, at 857.
"To qualify as a charity does not require that it have an exclusive relationship to the poor * * *
Bozeman, supra, at 148.
Second, the high quality of the facilities and care should not affect charitable and benevolent status:
"It may be that appellants feel the standard of care, the excellence of accommodations, and the mode of life accorded by this facility, all reflected by the size of the occupancy and maintenance fees, and the physical plant and facilities available are inconsistent with the usual concept of charity. But 'charity’ to the law has a *680much broader meaning than that accorded it in common speech (15 Am Jur 2d, p 8).” Id 149.
Further, it is not agreed that the institution must open its doors indiscriminately to any elderly applicant regardless of health or financial condition in order to qualify as "charitable” or "benevolent”. In fact, it might well be encouraged not to do so because better service may be provided. Here, plaintiff does not purport to be a nursing home staffed and equipped to care for the chronically ill, although it does provide free beds and nursing care for short-term illness. Although nonprofit, it does propose to be self-sustaining.
The second proposed criterion, beneficial interest to society, is not a novel idea. The Supreme Court of Montana recognized current social needs: "The scope of charity and the standards under which it is administered are not frozen by the past, but keep pace with the times and the new conditions and wants of society.” Bozeman, supra, at 149.
The 2 Restatement Trusts, 2d, § 368, recognizes the following as charitable purposes:
"(a) the relief of poverty;
"(b) the advancement of education;
"(c) the advancement of religion;
"(d) the promotion of health;
"(e) governmental or municipal purposes;
"(f) other purposes the accomplishment of which is beneficial to the community.”
In the comments under § 368, the Restatement notes:
"The common element of all charitable purposes is that they are designed to accomplish objects which are beneficial to the community.
*681"A purpose is charitable if its accomplishment is of such social interest to the community as to justify permitting the property to be devoted to the purpose in perpetuity.
"There is no fixed standard to determine what purposes are of such social interest to the community; the interests of the community vary with time and place.5
Thus, the basic question in the instant appeal becomes: Is plaintiff of sufficient beneficial interest to society as to qualify as a charitable and benevolent institution?6
The answer should be affirmative. Problems brought on by old age are rendered more acute by ever longer life expectancies and cause institutions such as plaintiff to be of beneficial interest to society. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has well expressed the reasons for such interest:
"Moreover, the social need of governmental and charitable caring for the aged, as well as the importance and necessity for such a benevolent public policy, have become widely recognized and accepted, as medical science in the United States constantly lengthens life expectancy with its resulting increase in the number of needy aged. The elderly, even those who are not completely incapacitated physically, suffer from loneliness, and from mental and physical infirmities which tend to increase as they grow older and their children leave the family home and their contemporaries move away or die. With each passing year, they usually become less and less able to cope with the day-to-day problems of *682life, including the management of their homes, their proper maintenance and support, and even, at times, their adequate nourishment; and they often live in fear and dread of illness or of some physical disability or possible poverty, or of just plain inability to adequately take care of themselves. It is certainly in the public interest and public welfare that homes and other facilities be established and maintained to relieve these worries and anxieties, these fears and sufferings, and this well-known inability of the aged to adequately care for themselves. Furthermore, it is a matter of common knowledge that pension plans, retirement benefits, and Government-supported programs for the support and care of the elderly greatly aid, but simply do not solve all of the underlying human problems of the aged.” (Emphasis added.) Presbyterian Homes, supra, at 151.7
I fail to find legislative intent not to exempt plaintiff in the partial tax relief accorded senior citizens owning their own homes. MCLA 206.522; MSA 7.557(1522). The majority opinion concludes that a full exemption for plaintiff is inconsistent with such partial tax relief. However, the concerns for plaintiff and institutions of its kind are differ*683ent from those concerns in MCLA 206.522, supra. The special needs of senior citizens are such that an institution such as plaintiff should be encouraged through property tax exemption as a charitable or benevolent institution. Many critical needs can only be met by such an institution.
Finally, it is notable that the Internal Revenue Service exempted plaintiff from income tax as a corporation organized for charitable purposes under Int Rev Code of 1954, § 501(c)(3). Rev Rul 72-124 applies to plaintiff:
"[I]t is now generally recognized that the aged, apart from considerations of financial distress alone, are also, as a class, highly susceptible to other forms of distress in the sense that they have special needs because of their advanced years. For example, it is recognized in the Congressional declaration of objectives, Older Americans Act of 1965, Public Law 89-73, 89th Congress, 42 USC 3001, that such needs include suitable housing, physical and mental health care, civic, cultural, and recreational activities, and an overall environment conducive to dignity and independence, all specially designed to meet the needs of the aged. Satisfaction of these special needs contributes to the prevention and elimination of the causes of the unique forms of 'distress’ to which the aged, as a class, are highly susceptible and may in the proper context constitute charitable purposes or functions even though direct financial assistance in the sense of relief of poverty may not be involved.
"Thus, an organization, otherwise qualified for charitable status under section 501(c)(3) of the Code, which devotes its resources to the operation of a home for the aged will qualify for charitable status for purposes of Federal tax law if it operates in a manner designed to satisfy the three primary needs of aged persons. These are the need for housing, the need for health care, and the need for financial security.
*684"The need for financial security, i.e., the aged person’s need for protection against the financial risks associated with' later years of life, will generally be satisfied if two conditions exist. First, the organization must be committed to an established policy, whether written or in actual practice, of maintaining in residence any persons who become unable to pay their regular charges.” 1 Internal Revenue Bulletin 1972, pp 145, 146-147.
The reasoning of Rev Rui 72-124 is in particular application to the instant case.
In short, I would find that, under the facts as well stated in the majority opinion, plaintiff is entitled to an exemption as a "charitable” or "benevolent” institution. The special problems of our increasing population of older Americans require that the exemption statute be interpreted to meet the needs of society as they exist.
At this writing, the young do not generally take into their homes older family members as was past custom. Although some may have enough money to exist alone, we now see life as embracing more than a roof over the head and food for the body. Not only the indigent and those physically or mentally disabled need our individual, legislative, or judicial compassion, but those who may be lonely, afraid or emotionally starved. There are those who cannot cope with the everyday chores of a house or an apartment and who suffer other physical and mental deprivations while alone. The persons or groups who, at no profit to themselves, provide for such needs under the circumstances of this case are engaged in a "charitable” or "benevolent” undertaking which is of particular benefit to the community.
I would find that plaintiff comes within the definition of the legislatively provided exemption, and, therefore, would reverse.

 A 1974 amendment added the following provision:
"Also charitable homes of * * * nonprofit corporations whose stock is wholly owned by religious or fraternal societies which own and operate facilities for the aged and chronically ill, in which no part of the net income from the operation of such corporations inures to the benefit of any person(s) other than the residents.” 1974 PA 358, § 1, eff April 1, 1975.

 A 1974 amendment added the following provision:
"The personal property of all charitable homes of * * * non-profit corporations which own and operate facilities for the aged and chronically ill, in which no part of the net income from the operation of such corporations inures to the benefit of any person(s) other than the residents shall be exempt.” 1974 PA 83, § 1.

 The Legislature employs the separate designations of "benevolent” and "charitable” institutions from which we may infer separate meanings. There is little case law on the subject, and it is inconsistent. Although "benevolent” may well be more liberally interpreted than "charitable”, this dissent is directed toward the more narrow meaning of the term "charitable”, as proposed by the prevailing opinion.

 See also, State Board of Tax Commissioners v Methodist Home for the Aged, 143 Ind App 419; 241 NE2d 84 (1968); Bozeman Deaconess Foundation v Ford, 151 Mont 143; 439 P2d 915 (1968); Four Freedoms House v City of Philadelphia, 443 Pa 215; 279 A2d 155 (1971); Presbyterian Homes Tax Exemption Case, 428 Pa 145; 236 A2d 776 (1968).

 The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania also recognized the view of the Restatement:
"' "Whether a purpose is charitable must be ascertained from a consideration of all surrounding circumstances. A design to achieve objects beneficial to the community is common to all charitable purposes. * * * The concept of charity is continually broadening.” ’ ” Presbyterian Homes, supra, at 150.

 The nonprofit status of plaintiff presents no problem.

 The California courts also recognize the special needs of the elderly:
“The courts have long recognized and declared that charity is not limited to giving alms, is not confined to relief of the poor, may extend to the rich in areas where they are not able to care for themselves, and extends to those social objectives which promote the general welfare and would be served by the government in the absence of philanthropic enterprises such as homes for the aged. Historically, and well-nigh unanimously, the courts have found homes for the aged to be charitable institutions where conducted at cost or less. They have also recognized that man, especially the old, does not live by bread alone; that though he be able to pay for all material wants he nevertheless may be dependent upon his fellow man or the government to protect him from the haunting fear of loss of all his property with resultant poverty, fear of illness or other physical disability overtaking him with no one near to help, fear of the loneliness arising from absence of social contacts, fear of any of the tragedies of old age where there is no one standing by to help.” (Emphasis added.)
Fifield, supra, at 11.