Trump Administration Rules Strip Religious-Freedom Protections from Social Services

[muriel_volestrangler]

Americans United for Separation of Church and State President and CEO Rachel Laser issued the following statement denouncing the final rules released today by the Trump administration that roll back nine federal agencies’ regulations that provide protections for people who use federally funded social services. These rules significantly change the existing regulations that govern when the government funds faith-based service providers, putting people who use government services at risk by undermining critical religious freedom and civil rights protections:

“These latest Trump administration rules undermine the civil rights and religious freedom of millions of our country’s most vulnerable people who rely on social services. People should never be forced to choose between obtaining taxpayer-funded services they desperately need and remaining true to their personal religious beliefs and identity.

“The federal government should prioritize the best interests of people in need, not the interests of service providers who are choosing to receive billions of taxpayer dollars to deliver government services. Instead, the Trump administration is opening the door to government-sponsored discrimination, potentially allowing taxpayer-funded, faith-based providers to use religious litmus tests to turn people away or refuse to provide services. LGBTQ people, women, religious minorities and the nonreligious will bear the burden of these rules.

“This is a parting ‘gift’ from the lame-duck Trump administration to its Christian nationalist allies, who lobbied hard for these changes. We urge the Biden-Harris administration to immediately start the process of restoring the religious freedom protections that were implemented just four years ago. The Obama-Biden-era regulations were based on the recommendations and comprehensive review of a consensus of interfaith and secular leaders from across the ideological spectrum. Americans United will explore every possible avenue to ensure these new Trump administration rules are revoked and religious-freedom protections are reinstated as quickly as possible.”

https://www.au.org/media/press-releases/Trump-Faith-Based-Regulations

Right now, faith-based service providers have to refer clients elsewhere if the people say they feel uncomfortable with their religious affiliation. That’s now gone.

Right now, any clients are required to be told about their religious freedom rights. They’re told they don’t have to participate in any religious activities, they are entitled to go to an alternative service provider, and they can file a complaint if necessary. That’s now gone.

Right now, if clients receive a voucher for social services, there must be a secular provider in addition to any religious providers. That requirement is now gone… which means there may be no secular options for some people.
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Affected by the new rules are: The U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Justice, Labor, Veterans Affairs and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

https://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2020/12/15/trump-will-get-rid-of-religious-freedom-protections-at-ten-federal-agencies/