In a 1970 decision the United States Supreme Court approved the exemption of church property from city real estate taxes, noting that “separation of church and state” was thereby well served (Walz v. Tax Commission of the City of New York). The Court stated:The exemption creates only a minimal and remote involvement between church and state and far less than taxation of churches. It restricts the fiscal relationship between church and state, and tends to complement and reinforce the desired separation, insulating each from the other.