FEMA revises policy to make churches eligible for disaster relief

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has revised its policy to make churches and other places of worship eligible for federal disaster relief funding.

The previous policy had prevented houses of worship from applying for disaster assistance, prompting three Texas churches and two Florida synagogues affected by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma to file lawsuits.

In the new guideline, FEMA states that houses of worship will no longer be "singled out for disfavored treatment within the community centers subcategory of [public assistance] nonprofit applicants."

The agency noted that the new policy was required by the Supreme Court's June 2017 decision in Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Comer, which held that religious groups should be allowed to receive equal access to widely available public programs.

"In light of the Trinity Lutheran decision, FEMA has considered its guidance on private nonprofit facility eligibility and determined that it will revise its interpretation of the aforementioned statutory and regulatory authorities so as not to exclude houses of worship from eligibility for FEMA aid on the basis of the religious character or primarily religious use of the facility," the FEMA document read, according to The Christian Post.

The three Texas churches had asked U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, Jr. for emergency relief, after being denied aid for months. Alito asked FEMA to respond to the churches' request and the agency issued the new policy just before the deadline set by the Supreme Court.

The lawsuit filed by the three Texas churches is pending at both the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans and the Supreme Court, while the Florida synagogues' case is pending in federal district court in Key West.

Becket, the non-profit religious liberty law firm that represents the Texas churches and the Florida synagogues, explained that it is not yet known how the new guidelines will affect the lawsuits.

Hi-Way Tabernacle, one of the Texas churches that sued, had been active in providing help to those victimized by Hurricane Harvey, despite the damages to its sanctuary due to severe flooding. The church, which is in need of assistance to repair the damages, reportedly took in about 80 to 90 evacuees in its Sunday school classrooms in the aftermath of the storm.

The church's pastor, Charles Stoker, said that he was relieved after he heard the news about FEMA's new policy.

"What a way to start 2018! It's been a cold day, and this news will warm us all up here! We're delighted that FEMA will start treating us like other charitable groups. And we look forward to continuing to help our neighbors as they recover from Harvey," the pastor said in a statement.