Judge rules for churches in fight over FEMA hurricane benefits
“The court has set the clock ticking on FEMA’s irrational religious discrimination policy,” said Daniel Blomberg, a lawyer for Becket, a nonprofit religious liberty law firm representing three churches.
“It can’t come soon enough.”
U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison ruled against FEMA’s request to delay the case until the end of the month.
The churches, Harvest Family Church, Hi-Way Tabernacle and Rockport First Assembly of God, all were impacted by Hurricane Harvey in August. Their facilities were flooded, even while they were providing benefits to community members, but the government said they would not be allowed to participate in standard recovery aid programs....