Group Opposes USAID's Proposed Expansion of Funding For Religious Structures

As Monday's deadline for comments approaches, the Anti-Defamation League announced that yesterday it had submitted a letter (full text) in opposition to a little-noticed proposal issued by by the U.S. Agency for International Development in March.  The proposal on Participation by Religious Organizations in USAID Programs would expand the extent to which US AID funds could be used for the acquisition, construction or rehabilitation of buildings that are devoted to inherently religious activities.  The existing rule, among other things, bars use of AID funds for sanctuaries or chapels that a recipient organization uses as its principal place of worship.  The proposed amendment provides that:

USAID funds may be used for the acquisition, construction, or rehabilitation of structures that are used, in whole or in part, for inherently religious activities so long as the program ... has a secular purpose, is made generally available to a wide range of organizations and beneficiaries which are defined without reference to religion, has the effect of furthering a development objective, the criteria upon which structures are selected ... are religiously neutral, and the selection criteria are amenable to neutral application. Examples ... include ... rehabilitation or reconstruction programs ... following a natural or manmade disaster; rehabilitation or reconstruction programs for schools; rehabilitation or reconstruction of structures that are architectural, artistic, cultural, or historical landmarks for cultural or historical preservation; and rehabilitation or reconstruction programs to promote tourism or other related economic activities.

The ADL comments raised concerns that the proposed rule could lead to extensive federal funds being used to build houses of worship. [Thanks to Michael Lieberman for the lead.]