On January 2, 2018 the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced that it would expand access to disaster relief to private nonprofit houses of worship. Previously, following natural disasters, churches, synagogues, and other houses of worship were barred from relief grants that were available for secular non-profits through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). While houses of worship often use their facilities as FEMA staging grounds for relief efforts, they themselves were not eligible for grants under FEMA’s Public Assistance grant program. In September 2017, following Hurricane Harvey, Harvest Family Church joined with two other churches to sue FEMA in a federal court in Texas, arguing that the churches should not be denied access to FEMA grants simply because they are houses of worship. Under the precedent set in Trinity Lutheran, the churches argued that denial of equal access to these grants constitutes discrimination in violation of the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.
The churches filed an emergency request for injunctive relief, and FEMA conceded the merits but asked for more time to revise its policy while still refusing to grant churches equal treatment. In December, the district court ruled against the churches, and they filed an emergency appeal to the Fifth Circuit requesting an injunction pending appeal and an expedited appeal. The Fifth Circuit granted an expedited appeal and denied an injunction.
Diana Verm of Becket will join us to discuss where the case stands after the FEMA announcement.
Featuring:
Diana Verm, Counsel, The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty

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