Charitable Choice Guide - Introduction

Introduction

A major feature of the new federal welfare legislation signed by President Clinton on August 22,
1996, is its encouragement of state cooperation with community and faith-based charities in
serving needy families. The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of
1996 [PRWOR] devolves welfare authority to the states within a framework comprised of several
basic guidelines. A key guideline is the \"charitable choice\" provision of Section 104.

The Charitable Choice provision has three goals. First, it seeks to encourage states to expand the
involvement of community and faith-based organizations in the public antipoverty effort. Second,
through a range of measures it protects the religious integrity and character of faith-based
organizations that are willing to accept government funds to provide services to the needy. Third, it
safeguards the religious freedom of beneficiaries, both those who are willing to receive services
from religious organizations and those who object to receiving services from such organizations.

The Charitable Choice guidelines clarify and codify the constitutional requirements for
governmental interaction with faith-based social-service providers. Too often constitutional law is
misinterpreted as requiring that faith-based organizations be excluded from participation in
governmental welfare programs or that their participation be conditioned on the removal of
religious practices and symbols. Section 104 incorporates U.S. Supreme Court precedents for
governmental neutrality between faith-based and secular providers of services, protection of the
religious integrity of faith-based providers, and protection of the religious liberty of beneficiaries.

As state and local governmental authorities begin to implement PRWOR, and as faith-based
charities consider if and how they will expand their involvement with governmental assistance
programs, it is vital that the requirements and intent of Section 104 be understood and accurately
applied. This guide is designed to foster an accurate understanding and full utilization of
Charitable Choice. Following this Introduction, it includes a series of Questions and Answers on
Section 104, followed by a detailed Overview of the Section. The text of the Section is printed in the
Appendix.

Stanley Carlson-Thies

Director, Project on Government and the Religious Social Sector

The Center for Public Justice

Washington, DC

Thanks to Karen Heal of CLS who produced the original HTML version of this document.