FEMA/RELIGION/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Less than four months after President Donald Trump suggested churches should be able to receive federal disaster relief funds, officials have changed federal policies to make it easier for religious institutions to qualify for such aid.
With lawsuits pending in Texas and Florida from churches and synagogues challenging the limits, the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced Tuesday [1-2-18] that it is removing language in its rules that has often disqualified religious groups from aid available to other nonprofits… FEMA said religious institutions could now qualify as ‘community centers’ eligible for disaster grants, though facilities primarily used for ‘political, athletic … recreational, vocational, or academic training’ will still be barred from receiving support.
Amid the Hurricane Harvey relief effort last September, Trump declared that the federal government was treating churches unfairly…
However, whether the Supreme Court decision requires the changes made by the Trump administration is far from clear.
Indeed, the judge assigned to the suit that three Texas churches brought over the previous policy denied them an injunction last month, writing that the Trinity Lutheran decision did not mean FEMA was obligated to pay to repair structures used primarily for religious purposes.”
-Josh Gerstein, “FEMA broadens churches’ access to disaster funds,” Politico, Jan. 3, 2018 09:27am