A bill to protect citizens from coercion and censorship for their views on marriage, the Marriage and Religious Freedom Act, got a boost recently from myriad pro-family groups urging its passage. Their letter is below:
Senator Mike Enzi
379A Russell Senate Office
Building Washington, D.C. 20510
Senator Mike
Lee
316 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senators Enzi and Lee:
We, the undersigned, representing hundreds of thousands
of Americans, want to
thank you for your leadership in reintroducing two key pieces of legislation designed to ensure that charities,
non-
profits, and small business
owners with religious beliefs or
moral convictions about
marriage are not penalized by the government for their
beliefs.
The Marriage
and Religious Freedom Act would prevent the federal government
from discriminating in programs, grants, contracts, and tax
treatment against individuals who
believe that marriage is between a
man and a woman. Such protections are urgently
needed in light of new federal agency conditions requiring endorsement of same-sex relationships
in order to compete for
certain federal grants. In
addition, the President’s problematic July 2014 Executive
Order jeopardizing the ability
of businesses and faith-based organizations that contract
with the federal government to hire and administer programs
according to their religious
beliefs is deeply
troubling. The government
should not deem longstanding providers
of important public services
ineligible to compete for federal funding simply
because of their
beliefs about marriage.
This bill would stop these
harmful and arbitrary
government penalties.
Similarly, S. 667, the Child Welfare Provider
Inclusion Act, would ensure that
faith-based adoption
and foster care providers working with
birth moms, parents, and community stakeholders to serve needy children
can continue to provide services in their respective locales.
S.667 would address
discriminatory actions
like those taken by Illinois, Massachusetts, D.C.
and San Francisco to force faith-based providers to halt services simply because of their belief that kids
do best with a mom
and
a dad. Indeed, the Child
Welfare Provider Inclusion Act reflects its name—it ensures
the inclusion of all providers
and particularly those faith-based
entities who have offered the bulk of
orphan care since
our nation’s founding. States
that choose to discriminate against
faith-based organizations despite this bill’s prohibition would
face a reduction in federal funding under this
bill, an important
deterrent to future targeting.
We as individuals and organizations wish to remain
active participants in and contributors to our communities. These bills ensure that we can
continue to do so while also
living in accordance with our
beliefs about marriage and the family. Significantly,
an overwhelming majority of Americans agree
that we should have this
freedom. Just last month,
new polling from WPA Opinion Research and Family
Research Council showed
that 81% of Americans believe that individuals like
us should be able to live
and work in accordance with our belief in marriage
as between a man and a woman.
While Americans
in general continue
to debate the meaning
of marriage in the lead
up to Supreme Court review
of state marriage laws this spring, one thing is clear: millions
of Americans who continue to affirm the historic understanding of marriage should
remain free from government discrimination.
Again, we thank you
for
your leadership in introducing and advocating for this
important legislation.
Sincerely,
Tony Perkins
President
Family Research Council
Gary L. Bauer
President
American Values
David Stevens, MD, MA (Ethics)
CEO
Christian Medical Association
Tom Minnery
President and CEO
CitizenLink
Richard A. Viguerie
Chairman
ConservativeHQ.com
Mathew Staver
Founder and Chairman
Liberty Counsel
Brian S. Brown
President
National Organization for Marriage
Michael A. Needham
CEO
Heritage Action
Dr. Ron Crews
CH (COL) USAR Retired Executive Director
Chaplain Alliance for Religious Liberty
Most Reverend Thomas Wenski
Archbishop of Miami
Chairman, USCCB Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development
Most Reverend William E. Lori
Archbishop of Baltimore
Chairman, USCCB Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty
Most Reverend Salvatore J. Cordileone
Archbishop of San Francisco
Chairman, USCCB Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage
Russell D. Moore
President
Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Penny Nance
President and CEO
Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee
Bishop Harry R. Jackson, Jr.
Chairman
High Impact Leadership Coalition
Star Parker
President
Center for Urban Renewal and Education
Carrie Gordon Earll
Vice President, Government and Public Policy
Focus on the Family
Rick Scarborough
President
Vision America Action
Keith Wiebe
President
American Association of Christian Schools
Thomas J. Cathey, EdD
Director for Legal Legislative Issues
Association of Christian Schools International
Dan Weber
CEO
Association of Mature American Citizens
Joel Grewe
Director
Generation Joshua
Susan A. Carleson
Chairman/CEO
American Civil Rights Union
Andrea Lafferty
President
Traditional Values Coalition
William J. Murray
Chairman
Religious Freedom Coalition
Austin Ruse
President
C-FAM
Elaine Donnelly
President
Center for Military Readiness
C. Preston Noell III
President
Tradition, Family, Property, Inc.
Robert Knight
Senior Fellow
American Civil Rights Union
Colin A. Hanna
President, Let Freedom Ring
Co-Chair, The Weyrich Lunch
Curt Levey
President
The Committee for Justice
Nicole Theis
President
Delaware Family Policy Council
David Fowler
President
Family Action of Tennessee, Inc.
Dale Bartscher
Executive Director
Family Heritage Alliance Action (SD)
Julie Lynde
Executive Director
Cornerstone Family Council, Idaho
Phil Burress
President
Citizens for Community Values Action
Allen Whitt
President
Family Policy Council of West Virginia
Jim Minnery
President
Alaska Family Action
John Helmberger
CEO
Minnesota Family Council
Kent Ostrander
Executive Director
The Family Foundation (KY)
Michael Geer
President
Pennsylvania Family Institute
Peter Wolfgang
President
Family Institute of CT Action
Rev. Jason J. McGuire
Executive Director
New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms
Joe Ortwerth
Executive Director
Missouri Family Policy Council
Gene Mills
President
Louisiana Family Forum
Andrew Beckwith
President
Massachusetts Family Institute
Jonathan Saenz
President
Texas Values
Len Deo
Founder & President
New Jersey Family Policy Council
Jonathan Gardner
Executive Director
New Mexico Center for Family Policy
