Church-state advocates including the Baptist Joint Committee have urged President Obama to adopt the Faith Advisory Council's recommendations for reform, recently presented to the White House. But what happens next? Will they disappear into a bureaucratic black hole? Adoped in full or in part? Given specific and open endorsement or just subtle use of its principles? Sooner than later? So far, as it has done with the controversial issue of discrimination in hiring, the White House has left the question of when, how and whether they will answer at all, up in the air.
ABP's Rob Marus interviewed Melissa Rogers, former BJC Counsel who chaired the diverse group, and asked her when we might expect some action. She points out that different recommendations would require different types of action. Importantly, she sees movement already.
I expect the administration to give the recommendations serious consideration in the very near term. Those of us who worked on them will continue to urge swift adoption, and I hope others will as well. While some of our recommendations will require amendments to an existing executive order and existing regulations, a number of others may be adopted simply by making changes in practice. On the latter score, let me note that I already see the White House Office [of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships] placing heavy emphasis on constitutional compliance in its rhetoric, and I see substantial evidence that the White House and the centers in federal agencies are moving toward promoting non-financial collaboration with non-profits as much as financial collaboration. In our report, we recommended that the administration take both of these steps, so that is encouraging.
