The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is rethinking a policy. Currently, the agency denies some aid to religious institutions in emergencies. If the money will be used to rebuild sanctuaries damaged in natural disasters, it will not be awarded by FEMA. The policy stems from an understanding of what’s called “separation of church and state.”
Several churches hit by recent hurricanes are challenging the policy in court.
When disaster strikes, religious groups are often on the front lines, feeding and sheltering victims. But those groups are routinely denied aid by FEMA when they need to repair or rebuild their damaged worship areas after the storms’ destruction. The churches filing suits say that they can’t organize to be of help without their buildings to gather in year-round.
Scores of churches in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico suffered from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria earlier this year. The volume of damage—and the volume of outreach from those religious communities—has put the pressure on FEMA.
Legislation to change the FEMA policy was proposed after Hurricane Sandy hit the northeast in 2012. But it wasn’t passed. Several members of Congress want to revive the topic now. Debate centers on two key questions: Does providing such aid violate the First Amendment separation of church and state? Or might it infringe on the First Amendment right to free exercise of religion to deny churches the same aid available to numerous other nonprofit organizations?
Religious entities can be reimbursed by local governments for sheltering evacuees. They can receive small business loans to repair their buildings—but those loans must be paid back with interest. FEMA can provide some funds to repair church-run facilities that function like community centers—but only if less than half the space is used for religious practices like prayer, preaching, and worship.
“It is the faith community that responds so robustly to the need,” says Representative Christopher Smith. The New Jersey Republican is sponsoring the bill to change the policy.
Not everyone shares his support—even among damaged churches.
First Baptist Rockport Church of Rockport, Texas, sustained about $1 million in damage from Hurricane Harvey. Senior Pastor Scott Jones says his church won’t “expect or count on help from the federal government. . . . We believed that God would provide for us another way.”
(AP Photo: Vice President Mike Pence, with his wife Karen, speaks to residents affected by Hurricane Harvey during a visit to the First Baptist Rockport Church in Rockport, Texas.)
