How is “charitable choice” related to the Presidents White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives?
A. One purpose of the Presidents White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives is to remove “barriers” in the path of faith-based organizations that wish to provide government-funded social services. By actively seeking out and identifying barriers to the participation of faith-based organizations in the delivery of social servicesand working to identifying rule changes to help those communitiesthe Office will assume responsibility for “charitable choice.” Concerns exist about how this new White House Office can function without running afoul of the principle of church-state separation. In that light, ADL will urge the Office to carry out its mission with sufficient regard to the safeguards that have traditionally prevented faith-based organizations from integrating religious activities into their delivery of government-funded social services.
