Warnock’s church could face subpoena after failing to respond to Georgia secretary of state

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger will need to decide whether to subpoena the church of senatorial candidate Raphael Warnock after it failed to respond in writing to a legal inquiry on its charitable status.

The Secretary of State’s Securities and Charities Division has demanded explanation from the Ebenezer Building Foundation — a foundation operated by Warnock’s Ebenezer Baptist Church — of its charitable status within the state. 

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“The Division’s records indicate that Ebenezer Building Foundation, Inc […] is not registered as a charitable organization with the State of Georgia,” the Securities and Charities Division wrote in an Oct. 12 letter. 

Warnock is the senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church and a principal officer of the Ebenezer Building Foundation.

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The Oct. 12 letter continued, “Accordingly, if Ebenezer Building Foundation is soliciting charitable contributions and operating as a charitable organization in the State of Georgia without an active registration or applicable exemption, it is in violation of O.C.G.A. § 43-17-5, and therefore, is subject to administrative penalties under O.C.G.A. § 43-17-13.”

Neither Ebenezer Baptist Church nor Ebenezer Building Foundation replied in writing by the Nov. 2 deadline. 

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Officials are now forced to decide whether to increase pressure on the foundation via subpoena if the state’s inquiries go unanswered, a spokesman for the state charities division said Thursday, according to the Washington Free Beacon.

A dozen eviction lawsuits were filed against residents between February 2020 and September 2022. One report included an eviction notice for a resident owing as little as $25.88 in past-due rent.

Ebenezer Baptist Church, which pays Warnock a sizable $7,417 monthly housing allowance as its senior pastor, is 99% owner of the Columbia Tower at MLK Village, where residents have received eviction notices for owing as little as $25.88 in past-due rent, according to documents obtained by the Free Beacon.

Eight tenants at Columbia Tower, which is also run by Columbia Residential and described as a haven for the “chronically homeless” and those afflicted with “mental disabilities,” have been issued eviction notices since early 2020 for owing an average of $125 in rent.

Fox News’ Jon Brown contributed to this report.