Attorney Greg Baylor of Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) explains that the House has eliminated protections for the faith-based social service providers who participate in the anti-poverty Community Services Block Grant program.
"There has been legal protection in the statute … all the way back to 1998, when these protections for faith-based providers were put in on a bipartisan basis by both Republican and Democratic senators," Baylor explains. "Now, for some reason, Democrats in the House have decided they want to eliminate that language and thereby reduce the protections that are available for participants in this program."
The vote involving HR 5129 occurred on Friday, May 13th, 2022. The bill now will go to the Senate.
"We're already making the case here at ADF with the Senate, encouraging them to retain this long-standing language that gives a welcome sign to faith-based organization who want to participate in federal anti-poverty programs," says Baylor. "The House has sent the exact opposite signal, suggesting that they're not wanted or not needed."
ADF hopes the Senate will restore the protection for faith-based providers.
