ARENT RELIGIOUSLY-AFFILIATED ORGANIZATIONS ALREADY GETTING STATE MONEY FOR SOCIAL SERVICE PROGRAMS?
YES! Religiously-affiliated organizations can and do get money from the state under the current provision. To receive the money, all these organizations have to do is agree not to discriminate on the basis of religion in hiring and providing services, and agree not to proselytize with state money. This is in keeping with the most recent Georgia Supreme Court opinion on the subject. In its January 17, 2006 decision, Taetle vs. Atlanta Independent School System, the Georgia Supreme Court said that the state may not fund religious activities, but “that is not to say that a political subdivision of the state cannot enter into an arms-length, commercial agreement with a sectarian institution to accomplish a non-sectarian purpose.” Now, all social service providers – religious and non-religious – live by the same rules.
