The publication Federal Funds for Organizations That Help Those in Need describes some 170 authorized federal programs for which nonprofit organizations, including faith-based, may be eligible to apply under categories such as children and youth, elders in need, health and community services. Program summaries give Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) program numbers: full program descriptions of these, plus additional programs funded since 2006, may be obtained by entering program numbers at the CFDA website http://www.cfda.gov.
President Obama's Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships website at http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ofbnp includes information about the initiative under his administration, including "Grants & Resources" (see tab). Many executive departments have their own Federal Centers for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, listed at http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ofbnp/offices/federal; and most states also have coordinating offices, listed at http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ofbnp/offices/states.
Faith-based organizations (FBOs) are eligible to participate in federally administered social service programs the same as any other non-profit groups, although certain restrictions on FBOs that accept government funding have been created by the White House to protect separation of church and state.
- They may not use direct government funds to support inherently religious activities such as prayer, worship, or religious instruction.
- Any inherently religious activities that the organizations may offer must be offered separately in time or location from services that receive federal assistance.
- FBOs cannot discriminate on the basis of religion when providing services; services (for example, a soup kitchen for the homeless or juvenile mentoring programs) must be made available to all eligible community residents, not just FBO members.
The website USA.gov for Nonprofits at http://www.usa.gov/Business/Nonprofit.shtml also provides links to additional information on Grants, Loans, and Other Assistance.
CRS Reports RL34012 Resources for Grantseekers; and RL32159 How to Develop and Write a Grant Proposal.
