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eNews for Faith-Based Organizations

January 16, 2009 - special edition

Editor: Stanley Carlson-Thies
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in this issue
Listen To Advisory Council Discussions
Advisory Council To Vote Jan. 19 on Recommendations
Premature Call to Close Faith-Based Programs
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An archive of current and past eNews for FBOs can be accessed HERE.
Listen to the Advisory Council's Discussion of "Reform of the Office" Recommendations
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By conference call, the Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships last Monday (Jan. 11) discussed the nearly-final draft recommendations of the Taskforce on "Reform of the Office"--recommendations about the church-state rules that should apply to federal funds received by faith-based organizations, and also suggestions for improving the operations and effectiveness of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and the counterpart Centers in 12 federal agencies.

The recording of the nearly 2-hour conference call can be heard by calling this toll-free number: 888-562-6809.  You may need this passcode:  23567.

You will find the version of taskforce's draft recommendations that was discussed on that call attached to the story "Faith-Based Advisory Council Nears Voting on Recommendations to the President" on the home page of the IRFA website. 

The taskforce draft recommendations and the Advisory Council discussions detail two major areas of disagreement:  (1) whether or not a faith-based organization should be required to remove religious symbols in a space where it delivers federally funded services (see recommendation 6); and (2) whether or not churches should be required to establish a separate nonprofit organization (some say, a separate 501(c)(3) organization) to receive government funds and provide government-funded services (see recommendation 12).  The draft recommendations carefully outline the positions and arguments.

It is not clear from January 11 discussion how the Advisory Council will vote on these two issues.  Before that vote, the taskforce will circulate to the Advisory Council a version of its recommendations that has been modified to take account of comments made during the call.

In other words:  there are not yet any official Advisory Council recommendations, much less any new policy set by the President in response to the Advisory Council and the taskforces.

Careful readers of the taskforce draft recommendations should note another recommendation that is troubling.  Recommendation 6 proposes that, to clarify to providers how they must keep any religious activities that they offer separated from services funded directly by government, the administration should utilize the principles of a Bush administration document, "Safeguards Required."  But that document was the outcome of a court case where a faith-based organization had, despite the rules and notwithstanding warnings, acted inappropriately.  Because of that organization's negative track record, the document rightly imposes detailed requirements.  It is not appropriate to impose that same straitjacket on faith-based organizations in general-most of whom, just like most secular organizations, strive to live up to the spirit as well as the letter of the rules to which they have agreed. 

Note that the important issue of religious hiring by religious organizations that receive federal funding was placed off limits to the Advisory Council and its taskforces.
Advisory Council Votes on All Taskforce Recommendations January 19
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By conference call on January 19th, 4-6 pm EST, the Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships will discuss final recommendations of all 6 taskforces and vote on those recommendations.

The public can listen in (with a comment period at the end) by calling 800-857-8628.  Passcode:  9064114.

The approved recommendations (with notation of disagreements) will be presented to the President in mid-February.
Premature Call to Close Faith-Based Programs
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In response to the sentiment of some Advisory Council members that religious symbols should not be visible in spaces where federally funded services are delivered, and candidate Barack Obama's promise to ban religious hiring in any program that a faith-based group operates with federal funds, the valuable watchdog group, the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, issued a statement, "Time to Close Faith-Based Programs." 

Yet on religious hiring, President Obama has not done what candidate Obama promised.  And the view of some members of the Advisory Council that religious symbols should be hidden was sharply countered by other members of the Advisory Council.

There's a more important reason to ignore the Catholic League's call, as well-intentioned as it is.  The League's statement says that the goal of the faith-based initiative, as launched by President Bush, "was to put an end to the long-standing discriminatory practice of allowing federal monies to be spent on secular social service agencies, but not religious-based programs." 

But that's not quite right.  Religiously affiliated organizations already partnered with federal, state, and local agencies long before President Bush, and before the Charitable Choice rules signed into law by President Clinton.  The faith-based initiative as pressed by President Bush and reflected in those Charitable Choice rules instead is an effort to remove the secularizing requirements that often have accompanied federal funds-to make sure that faith-based organizations can partner with the federal government without eliminating or suppressing their religious identity. 

The change of rules, not just some federal practices, is the key.  The reforms of the Bush and Clinton years have gone a long way--though not all the way--to creating that level playing field where submission to secularizing requirements is not the price of federal funds. 

Those good rules remain in place-despite some contrary sentiments that are bubbling up.  If the rules later are changed so that faith-based groups can only participate if they sacrifice important aspects of their religious character and mission-then they should indeed walk away.  And then we will have to say that the federal faith-based initiative has ended-because the reforms will have been reversed.  And it will be time to close-or rename-the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

But even then it will not be "Time to close faith-based programs."  Instead, those faith-based programs will and should continue--without government funding. 
  For further information:
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The Institutional Religious Freedom Alliance works to safeguard the religious identity, faith-based standards and practices, and faith-shaped services of faith-based organizations across the range of service sectors and religions, enabling them to make their distinctive and best contributions to the common good.