Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA), alleging the state agency has discriminated against faith-based groups regarding access to public funds for homeless and low-income housing initiatives.
“State agencies have no authority to force Christians and other religious organizations to censor their beliefs just to serve their communities,” Paxton said, according to a press release from his office earlier this week.
The suit, which was filed Nov. 17, maintains that TDHCA regulations violate both the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the religious freedom provisions of the Texas Constitution by imposing conditions on religious organizations that are not placed on secular ones.
The strictures effectively discriminate against groups that wish to incorporate worship, prayer or religious teaching into their services, the lawsuit argues. The suit targets Texas’ homelessness assistance program, which prohibits funding for “sectarian or explicitly religious activities such as worship, religious instruction, or proselytization.”
It also challenges the state’s Bootstrap Loan Program, which similarly forbids support for “any explicitly religious activities” and requires grant recipients to adopt formal policies banning such activities.
“Constitutionally protected religious liberty must be upheld in Texas and across the country,” Paxton said. “These TDHCA’s provisions within certain programs, which deter funding from going towards churches and religious organizations, must be struck down.”
The Christian Post has reached out to the TDHCA and will update this article if a response is received.
Paxton’s lawsuit, which requested a Travis County district court to permanently enjoin enforcement of the restrictions, asserts that the government must remain neutral toward religion and cannot deny public benefits to organizations for implementing faith-based elements.
This lawsuit comes after Paxton recently filed a separate lawsuit aimed at dismantling three longstanding state-funded higher education programs that he claims unconstitutionally exclude religious students and faith-based organizations from taxpayer benefits.
According to the complaint filed earlier this month, the Texas College Work-Study Program, the Texas WORKS Internship Program and the Texas Innovative Adult Career Education Grant Program contain “nonsectarian” restrictions that effectively bar Christian ministries and religious students from receiving taxpayer funding in violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
“These anti-Christian laws targeting religious students must be completely wiped off the books,” he said. “Our nation was built by patriotic Americans who had the freedom to express their religious beliefs without fear of being targeted, and we will honor that heritage by upholding the First Amendment in Texas.”
In September, Paxton urged public schools across the state to set aside specific time for prayer and Bible reading, expressly recommending the use of the Lord’s Prayer, citing the newly passed Senate Bill 11, even though the law was at that time blocked by a temporary court injunction.
SB 11 allows local school boards to establish policies permitting voluntary prayer and Bible reading, provided parents give permission for their children to participate.
The legislation also requires the attorney general’s office to provide legal defense for any district that implements such policies and authorizes Paxton to offer recommended best practices, which included his suggestion that schools incorporate the Lord’s Prayer “as taught by Jesus Christ.”
Jon Brown is a reporter for The Christian Post. Send news tips to jon.brown@christianpost.com
