US Rep. Bill Thomas’ office tells me that the "Safe Harbor for Churches" provision in H.R. 4520, American Jobs Creation Act of 2004, was “struck down” yesterday. Good news. The provision, sponsored by Thomas with the support of House Speaker Dennis Hastert and Majority Leader Tom Delay, would have eroded the concept of separation of church and state by allowing churches to endorse partisan political candidates. The National Council of Churches and two dozen religious denominations opposed the Republican bill. More updates will be posted as they become available.
Update: The Chronicle of Philanthropy now has a story posted about the defeat of the Safe Harbor for Churches proposal on their web site.
