USCCB - (SDWP) - Faith-Based Initiative

Faith-Based Initiative

February, 2004

Issue

The President's Faith-Based and Community Initiatives proposal emphasizes overcoming poverty and the complementary roles and responsibilities of religious groups, community organizations and government in achieving that goal. It presents us with an opportunity to refocus the nation’s attention on so much poverty in a rich nation. Sadly, it has also been caught in partisan and ideological cross-fire. In many communities where disinvestment and discrimination exacerbate the problems of addiction, family disintegration, and violence, churches and community-based charities are often the only institutions still there and able to address the pervasive poverty of their neighbors. With the new demands placed on charities in light of the troubled economy, it is more important than ever to make sure that all charities, faith-based or secular, have access to the private and public resources they need to serve the “least of these.” Matt. 25.

Background

White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives: The Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives has been established to take the lead in promoting, strengthening and expanding grassroots and faith-based services to overcome poverty. There are now similar offices at seven cabinet agencies - Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Justice, Education and Labor, and the most recent, at Agriculture and the State Department’s Agency for International Development - to review polices and programs to remove unnecessary obstacles that may prevent faith-based and community organizations from entering partnerships with the federal government on the same terms as other groups.

Regulatory Actions: The Administration has amended or proposed amending regulations affecting programs at several agencies, including the Department of Health and Human Services (Community Services Block Grant, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services) and the Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Labor, Justice, Education and Veterans Affairs. The changes are intended to clarify that religious entities are able to participate in these programs on the same basis as other organizations.

Legislative Actions: The Senate passed the Charity Aid, Recovery and Empowerment (CARE) Act, S. 476 on April 9 by a vote of 95-5. The CARE Act provides crucial new resources to the faith-based and secular charities that serve our needy brothers and sisters, through $1.3 billion in new funding for the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG), tax-code changes to allow non-itemizers to take a tax deduction for a portion of their charitable contributions (a proposal long supported by the Conference) and creation of a Compassion Capital Fund to provide technical assistance and capacity building for faith-based and community organizations.

Unfortunately, “equal treatment” language, which included clarifications that religious social service providers cannot be required to alter or remove religious icons or symbols or to change their names as a condition of participation in federally funded programs serving the poor, was dropped in a compromise move to ensure speedy passage and avoid a lengthy debate on threatened amendments to restrict the right of religious organizations to prefer co-religionists in hiring. (While the hiring issue is no longer part of the

CARE Act debate, it has come up on other legislation. Preserving this long-standing ability to hire is a major priority for the bishops’ conference and other Catholic institutions.)

The House of Representatives passed its companion to the CARE Act, “The Charitable Giving Act of 2003” (H.R. 7), on September 17 by a vote of 408-13. The House bill does not include new SSBG funding. The White House has unfortunately also opposed the inclusion of the $1.3 billion in new resources.

Differences between the two bills must now be reconciled before a final bill can be voted on and sent to the President.

USCCB Position

The USCCB has been supportive of President Bush’s Faith-Based and Community Initiatives proposal because we believe it has the potential to put new tools in the hands of those struggling daily to overcome the most difficult problems in our communities: persistent poverty, violence, substance abuse, inadequate housing, and obstacles faced by those entering the job market. We strongly support the new SSBG resources for programs serving the poor in the Senate bill.

Catholic social teaching and the principle of subsidiarity have long stressed the importance of small and intermediate-sized communities or institutions in exercising moral responsibility. We support increased resources for faith-based and community-based mediating institutions that are pursuing creative, responsive and effective solutions with the potential to help people gain independence from violence, addiction and poverty. Faith-based groups should be allowed to participate in federally-funded programs to meet social needs on the same terms as other groups, without changing their fundamental nature or facing discrimination because of their religious identity.

See Economic Justice For All, 11/86; Moral Principles and Policy Priorities for Welfare Reform, 3/95; Statement by Cardinal Roger Mahony, 2/12/01; numerous letters from Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Fr. Michael Place, Catholic Health Association, and Fr. J. Bryan Hehir, Catholic Charities USA in 2002 and 2003.

What You Can Do

Strongly urge your Senators and Representatives to complete work on S. 476/H.R. 4 and to support increased Social Services Block Grant funding (used by faith-based and community groups to serve working families, abused and abandoned children, persons with disabilities, and the frail elderly) in the final bill.
Urge your Senators and Representatives to support legislation that will increase the ability of faith-based and community groups to partner with the federal government in serving our neediest citizens, without giving up their identity.
Stay in touch with USCCB for Action Alerts on new bills as they are introduced this year.

For Further Information

Kathy Curran, 202-541-3188, kcurran@usccb.org.
Mark Gallagher, 202-541-3142, mgallagher@usccb.org