An update from the Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy, an independent research project
of the Rockefeller Institute of Government. The public policy research arm of the State University of New York.

New! Planned Rescue of Fannie and Freddie Complicates Housing Bill

The Senate made an apparent breakthrough last week in a months-long debate over how to stabilize a
worsening housing market, but efforts to pass a final bill were complicated over the weekend by an
Administration proposal to bolster two huge government-sponsored mortgage companies. The $300 billion
Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, approved by the Senate Friday, includes a regulatory overhaul
of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, help to struggling home-loan borrowers to avoid foreclosure, a modernization
of the Federal Housing Administration and $14.5 billion in housing-related tax breaks. On Sunday, the U.S.
Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve proposed a plan to rescue Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae from
further deterioration by allowing the government to purchase an equity stake in the agencies and extending
the government's existing line of credit to them. On Tuesday, Congressional leaders said they needed more
time to consider how to incorporate the Administration's proposal in a bill for final passage and the
President's signature.

The housing crisis has had a direct impact on faith-based and community organizations, which report an
increase in the number of people seeking assistance for basic housing and food as they are unable to pay
increased mortgage interest rates or skyrocketing rental fees. Some of these nonprofits are also feeling the
brunt as they provide financial counseling to low-income families or are primary lenders and property buyers
for new affordable housing projects.

Click here to read more by Roundtable Washington Correspondent Anne Farris.

Click here for a previous Roundtable story on the mortgage crisis’ impact on faith-based nonprofits.

New! An Interview with Lynn Portnoff, on the closing of
Breachmenders Ministries

Lynn Portnoff has been a board member of Breachmenders Ministries for most of the Pittsburgh-based
faith-based organization’s 27-year existence. In 1980, she helped create the nonprofit provider of affordable
housing and job-training services as an outgrowth of the church she attends, Friendship Presbyterian.
She oversaw Breachmenders’ growth and emergence as a center of the community, as the organization
expanded to provide after-school and career-development programs for youth and teens in the low-income,
primarily African American neighborhood known as West Oakland and the Hill District.

Now, Portnoff is the board’s point person in dissolving the faith-based nonprofit, following its inability to recover
from two embezzlements earlier this decade. Likening the dissolution to cleaning out the house of a deceased
and beloved relative, she said she and the rest of the board are committed to closing the organization with
“grace, dignity and accountability.” She spoke with the Roundtable about that process, as well as some lessons
learned from the organization’s decline.

Click here to read the interview.

Click here for a previous Roundtable article on Breachmenders.

New! Opposing Groups Urge Next President to Improve
Faith-Based Policy

Two weeks ago, Sen. Barack Obama announced that, if elected President, he would continue federal efforts
to encourage religious charities to provide social services in partnership with the government. The presumptive
Democratic presidential nominee’s words reignited debate over several aspects of the Faith-Based and
Community Initiative, launched by the Bush Administration seven years ago. Last week, an association of
liberal religious and civil rights groups – the Coalition Against Religious Discrimination (CARD) – called on
Obama and Republican candidate Sen. John McCain to reform the federal effort by reinstating pre-Bush
Administration policies that it claims would “restore the constitutionally required safeguards and civil rights
protections that were in place for decades.” The statement provides a counterpoint to the position of another
association of perhaps more conservative religious groups – the Coalition to Preserve Religious Freedom (CPRF).
In March, CPRF posted a statement on its website advising the candidates to “expand and invigorate” the work
started under President George W. Bush. While both seek to promote the rights of religious organizations,
the coalitions advocate for opposing policies on controversial issues, such as whether faith-based groups should
be able to base employment decisions on religion when using public funds.

Click here to read the Coalition Against Religious Discrimination's letter to presidential candidates.

Click here to read the Coalition to Preserve Religious Freedom’s letter to presidential candidates.

Click here for a previous Roundtable story on Democratic Sen. Barack Obama’s intention to maintain a faith-
based effort at the White House, and here for a story on the debate over religious hiring rights sparked by
that announcement.

Weekly Digest of Federal Grants with Faith-Based and Community
Organization Eligibility

The grant opportunities this week for community and faith-based organizations are through programs
administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Potential applicants should be aware
that some grant programs require specific technical expertise, or experience in particular foreign countries.

Click here for the grants digest.

Roundtable Digest of Current Faith-Based News Stories

Obama Pledges To Expand Bush's Faith-Based Works
The Christian Century Magazine

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8516

Obama's Backing Of Faith-Based Programs Boosts Progressives
BeyondChron

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8517

Pure or Purely Political? Black Ministers Debate Obama's Interest In Faith-Based Programs
BlackAmericaWeb.com

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8518

Obama, Mccain Disagree On Hiring
The Denver Post

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8519

Donations Down, Need Up At Social Services
Daily Record (Wooster, Ohio)

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8528

Faith and the Feds, Version 2.0.08
The Denver Post

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8529

Florida Community Is A Sober Haven For Recovering Addicts
The Miami Herald (Florida)

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8525

Iowa Christian Leaders Press For Humane Immigration Laws
Christian Post

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8526

Volunteers from Faith-Based Groups Provide Many Disaster Relief Services
Right Side News

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8520

Immigration Treats Church Sanctuary Carefully
The Christian Post

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8521

Bill Seeks To Help Nonprofits On Fuel; Mileage Allowance Of The IRS Is Focus
The Baltimore Sun

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8522

Obama Has Long Backed Faith Charities; Despite Criticism, Jackson Took Funds
Chicago Tribune

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8523

Faith-Based Groups Find Time For Local Refugees
dallasnews.com

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8527

Program to Provide Help for the Homeless
The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, VA.)

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8533

Charities Feel the Pinch; Economy Takes Bite Out Of Food Bank, Others
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8530

Gov. Strickland's Task Force Tackles Problems of Poor; Panel Needs Ideas Fast That Won't Cost Much
The Columbus Dispatch (Ohio)

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8531

Ministers Favor Obama's Plan
The Republican (Springfield, Massachusetts)

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8524

Church, State Program To Aid 1,000 Freed Inmates Yearly
The Birmingham News

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8532

12 Groups to Treat What Ails Newark; New Collaborative Effort Will Target Residents Who Need Help The Most
The Star-Ledger (Newark, New Jersey)

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8534

Obama Makes Faith-Based Mistake
Grand Rapid Press (Michigan)

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=8546

Weekly Opinion Roundup - 7/15/2008
The Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/news_opinion_7_15_08.cfm