Department of Justice sues Idaho for religious discrimination after denying church permit
The Justice Department accused a small city in northern Idaho of religious discrimination after it denied zoning permits from local evangelical churches that held worship services.
The Justice Department announced a lawsuit filed on May 20, accusing the City of Troy, Idaho of violating the Religious Land Use and Institutionalization of People Act (RLUIPA) after it denied a conditional use permit for Christian churches to serve in its C-1 Zoning district, in its downtown C-1 Zoning district, in its clubs such as clubs such as Mumauimums, Muspeorums, Cuditoriums and Art Gallies and Art Gallies and Art Callies and Art Gallorees and Art Gallore sies and Artecore and Artecore,
The Justice Department noted that Rluipa is a federal legislation passed in 2000 that aims to “protect individuals, chapels and other religious institutions from discrimination by zoning and landmark laws.”
According to the lawsuit, a small but rapidly growing evangelical church, Christian Church, in Moscow, Idaho, attempts to build another church campus in nearby Troy in September 2022 to accommodate its growth.
The Justice Department announced that it has filed a religious discrimination lawsuit against Troy, Idaho to deny the local church. (Getty/Michael Karin)
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The conservative evangelical church has faced some opposition in the Moscow community for years because of its faith and influence in the town of Liberty University, with some residents boycotting church-related businesses, according to a spokesperson.
The church made national headlines in September 2020 after several of its members were arrested for not wearing masks at external service protesting the city’s mask authorization, amid the Covid-19-19-19 pandemic.
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The Church of Christ allegedly contacted various locations in Troy and rented services over the weekend without success. In November 2022, Matt Meyer, an elder of the church and Troy residents, purchased a vacant bank in the city’s downtown commercial district with the aim of converting part of the property into a church space for church services and church meetings, while another part of the property will be rented as an event space for the community.
“Troy Day” in downtown Troy, Idaho. (BJ Swanson)
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Meyer applied for a conditional use permit and told the city that he had not found another suitable space to hold services in Troy. He said in his application that there was little impact on the surrounding businesses and that his purchase of vacant buildings would bring property tax revenue to the city.
The Troy City Council rejected the church’s application in March of that year after a public hearing on locals expressing strong opposition to the permit request.
According to the Justice Department, the city council denied the permit based on “no enhanced commercial district”.
In addition, the city council believes that most locals oppose granting church permits in the area, a decision that will burden residents and businesses by causing traffic and parking problems in the city, whose population is less than 1,000.
The Justice Department has questioned how the city defends its refusal based on several of its arguments in a lawsuit filed on behalf of the Church of Christ.
The elder of the Church of Christ, Matt Meyer, bought a former bank in the city center to convert vacant property into event centers and church space for meetings and weekend services. (Mat Meyer)
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The lawsuit questions why the city told Meyer that he could use the building for other community activities without retail purposes that would be considered “enhanced commercial districts” and allowed under the city’s zoning laws.
They claim the city has not conducted traffic research and has not provided conditions that can be imposed on the church to improve traffic and parking issues.
Many public comments at the public hearings indicate “discrimination against the church of Christianity, its members and their religious beliefs”.
The Justice Department lawsuit accused the city of Troy of violating Ruipa, by not treating Christian churches “equal treatment” through its zoning code, by imposing a “significant burden” on the church's religious activities, and by imposing a “substantive burden” on the church on a “religious basis.”
Troy City attorney Todd Richardson rejected the Justice Department's allegations of discrimination in an interview with Fox News Digital. He said that over the past two years they have allowed the Church of Christ to hold services in the buildings, and the investigation has been ongoing and they have worked fully with federal investigators.
The Justice Department stepped in after an Idaho church claimed the town of Troy, Idaho, discriminated against it by denying its zoning permit. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images))))
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City prosecutors accused the Justice Department of using a “bullying tactic” to try to force their hands.
He said the case had nothing to do with religion, but rather about the city's preservation of commercial districts in two blocks of downtown and boycotting up to 15% of the population to gather in one location and putting pressure on the city's limited resources”.
“We have no complaints about the Christian Church in the city. We are worried about the overwhelmingness of that area,” he said.
Matt Meyer, the elder of the Church of Christ, filed a complaint in a lawsuit with the Justice Department, told Fox News that the church was happy to work with the city to accommodate any of its concerns, such as parking restrictions, but city leaders “never asked us to provide any conditions.”
The city of Troy refused to provide its church with a conditional use permit to hold services in buildings in its downtown area, and Matt Meyer filed a complaint of religious discrimination with the Justice Department. (Getty Image)
He found the city’s unfounded allegations of parking and impacting businesses, saying many of the buildings in the city were vacant and the town was “mostly empty” on Sunday mornings.
Meyer attended a public hearing, with many residents opposing the grant of church permits. As mentioned in the Justice Department lawsuit, he referred to some people in the community's hostile comments about the church to point out that they may have played a role in the City Council's decision.
“Even if that group is a minority, elected officials may be influenced by vocal residents, it seems logical, but I can't read the city council's thoughts,” he said.
In April 2025, Troy passed a temporary zoning ordinance that changed many of the previously allowed uses of commercial districts “not allowed”, including auditoriums, community centers, citizens and fraternal organizations, parks, playgrounds, schools, schools, museums, libraries, cinemas and cinemas, and cinemas, and the use of churches according to conditions to prescribe the law.
Harmeet K. Dhillon, Assistant Attorney General of the Ministry of Justice's Civil Rights Division, said in a press release: “Rluipa explicitly prohibits local governments from deciding on zoning affairs based on dislike for certain religious groups. The Ministry of Justice will not hesitate to resort to jurisdictions based on religious beliefs to discriminate against religious beliefs.
Douglas Wilson, pastor of the Church of Christ, told Fox News Digital that public objections to his views should not be a factor in how city leaders treat his church.
“What I said has nothing to do with whether the church is allowed to meet. You do not approve the parliament on the basis of your disagreement about certain views.”
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The Justice Department told Fox News Digital that there was no further comment on the matter.
