Televangelist Lifestyle Under Fire:
Some say million-dollar earner and tax breaks don’t mix.
Turn Off the Darkness: Changing the World for Good (Hardcover) by David Cerullo

July 15, 2009 – A televangelist who froze wages and downsized his staff to save money is building a lakefront home in South Carolina.

Charlotte, N.C. based Inspiration Network’s CEO David Cerullo also defended his $1.5 million compensation in an interview last March after church employees alerted the Charlotte Observer about their concerns.

 

Since then calls and e-mails about the issue have gone unanswered by the network.

 

The newspaper reported contributions to 401(k) retirement accounts also were halted and the thermostat on the network’s new building was cut to 65 degrees during the winter to save money. But the Observer reported Cerullo’s $4 million home being built in a gated, lakefront community overlooking Lake Keowee in western South is on schedule.

 

The ministry has been scrutinized for accepting up to $26 million in incentives it won from South Carolina to move from Charlotte to Indian Land, S.C., in Lancaster County. Records show the network’s revenues are expected to approach $100 million, largely donations from people who are told God favors those who donate. Cerullo has said 80 cents of each donated dollar is spent to spread the Gospel.

 

“If they’ve got these kinds of assets, does the state really need to offer … tax breaks?” asked Don Weaver, president of the S.C. Association of Taxpayers.

 

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, is investigating the finances of six other televangelists and told the newspaper that leaders of religious nonprofits should be careful not to use viewers’ donations to adopt extravagant lifestyles. IRS rules bar nonprofits from paying “unreasonable compensation” to officials.

 

Posted By: Gospel Newswire

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