The Abstinence Clearinghouse Blog

E-Mail Broadcast
Heartbeat International
To: All Heartbeat Affiliates
From: Beth Diemert, Vice-President
Peggy Wolock, General Counsel
Nathan Burd, Director of Public Policy
Date: Wednesday, October 5, 2005

Recently Heartbeat had the opportunity to speak with two centers in Ohio that were visited by three representatives of the GAO (Government Accountability Office.) The GAO is an agency that works for Congress. Congress asks the GAO to study the programs and expenditures of the federal government. The GAO, commonly called the investigative arm of Congress or the congressional watchdog, is independent and nonpartisan. It studies how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars.

Two Congressmen from California - Pete Stark (D) 13th District and Gary Miller (D) 42nd District - have asked the GAO to take a look at some grants that have been given to faith-based organizations to ensure that no violation of the “separation of church and state” has occurred.

It is our understanding that they are looking at many kinds of faith-based grants, (emergency shelters, grants to churches, prison re-entry ministries, etc.), and not just the abstinence grants that many of our centers have received. They may also look at some of the grants that faith based organizations have received for “capacity building.”

It is also our understanding that they will have site visits in Ohio, Texas, Georgia, and California and that they expect to publish their report by June of 2006.

We thought it would be useful to share some talking points/practical tips with you and to share some of the questions that you might be asked to answer if the GAO contacts you. (Our affiliate in Dayton had about a month’s notice of this meeting.) See the attached document for some Talking Points/Practical Tips and for a list of questions that you may be asked.

We hope you find this information helpful and please let us know how things go if you meet with the representatives from the GAO.

*If this situation happens in your center, please call the Abstinence Clearinghouse.

Talking points/Practical Tips

A. If they are separate, have the meeting at your Abstinence Office, rather than your Administrative Office. (Sometimes the Abstinence Department is on another floor of the building, or is at another location.) It’s useful to demonstrate that the activities pursued with the grant money are separate in “time, place, and manner” from the faith-based activities of the organization. This helps show that you have separated your activities by “place.”

B. Be aware that the GAO investigators “see” what your clients would see. It might be worthwhile to consider what pictures or other items are in your abstinence department. What books or screensavers are visible? Be aware of your words, how you dress, and any jewelry that is worn.

C. It goes without saying, but be professional, courteous, and friendly. Your center has nothing to hide so try to avoid acting “on the defensive.” Use eye contact appropriately and answer the questions succinctly without being too curt. You need not provide additional information that isn’t asked for. Remember - this is an investigation by a governmental agency.

D. Stress that your center takes seriously the importance of maintaining the integrity of the mandate under which the funds were given. (i.e. that funds would not be used for sectarian instruction, worship, or proselytization.)

E. If you are asked if you have any statistics/practical experience to show that abstinence education works better through a faith-based organization vs. a non-faith-based organization, be aware that this is a question to answer carefully. (A court might find that a statute was unconstitutional if there was a suggestion that religious institutions or organizations with religious ties were uniquely well qualified to carry out those services.)

Instead, stress that it’s your understanding that the U.S. Supreme Court has held that a faith-based organization has just as much right to participate and receive federal funds to promote the public good/public health as an organization that is not faith-based.

It’s important that the federal aid is made available regardless of whether it will ultimately flow to a secular or religious/sectarian institution. The Supreme Court has never held that the First Amendment prohibits religious institutions from participating in publicly sponsored social welfare programs.

Charitable organizations with religious affiliations historically have provided social services with the support of their communities and without controversy.

A good example is Habitat for Humanity – a faith-based organization can build a house as well as a non-faith based organization.

F. It’s possible that representatives from the GAO may ask your center if you’ve talked to anybody or if anyone “tipped you off” about what their visit might entail. If asked, it’s appropriate to respond that while you did not know exactly what to expect, you spoke with others so that you could be prepared to answer questions as completely and forthrightly as possible to expedite the process.

G. Be prepared to provide information that corroborates your responses to questions. Have some information ready to share with the GAO. One of our affiliates in Dayton, Ohio, put together a packet of information and found it very useful as they went through the meeting with the GAO. This may’ve helped expedite the meeting because the center could refer to the materials that were in the packet and the GAO representatives seemed satisfied with that response and moved on to other questions.

This center included the following in the materials that they provided to the GAO:
1. Center information (brochures listing the services offered by the center and by the abstinence department, and the geographic area) They were also asked questions about the number of employees and size of their budget.

2. Curriculum information (overview of all curricula offered, outlines of curricula, chart showing compliance with A-H and Ohio Revised Code for each curriculum, permission slips inviting parents to attend parent information session, student and teacher praise, list of host sites)

3. SPRANS statement of assurance signed by employees, contractors, and volunteers with direct client service agreeing to uphold A-H and avoid faith-based activities prohibited by the funding.

4. Guidance Provided by Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) on questions regarding faith-based activities. (The GAO wanted to see any materials that the center used to train presenters on this issue.)

5. Non-Discrimination Policy signed by employees and contractors

6. Federal (A-H) and State (Ohio Revised Code: Section 3313.6011) Requirements for Abstinence Education

7. Summary of successful evaluation results of our program and numbers served.

Although they weren’t asked about the following, the Center also included:

1. Guidance provided by the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and MCHB on treatment of contraceptives.
2. Research on the need for abstinence education, teen sexual activity, success of abstinence education, and condom education failure.

The GAO asked for some other items including:
1. Copies of the Center’s award letters from SPRANS and the ODH.
2. Whether a “Single Audit” had ever been done on financial records. (A “single audit” is apparently done pursuant to the Single Audit Act and emphasizes a review of the internal controls of the entity being audited rather than a detailed audit of each grant. This particular center had their financial audit available and had made their CPA aware of the fact that they had received grants in excess of $500,000.)

Some Questions you might be asked (and you may be asked more than once)

1. What type of faith based organization is this? (Catholic, Protestant, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, etc.)

2. Tell us more about your history, geographic areas that you serve, how long you’ve had the abstinence program, etc.

3. Describe the range of services provided through your grant.

4. Provide examples of essential services.

5. Do you partner with other government agencies or organizations in the administration of funds?

6. How long have you been receiving the grant?

7. What’s your budget? (they were willing to go with round figures/estimates but it’s good to know that they asked this question so you can be prepared with a response.)

8. How many staff do you have? Are there any in other locations? (specify if your responses only pertain to the abstinence staff or if you’re speaking of your staff as a whole.)

9. Do you hire only Christians for the abstinence program? [Bear in mind that you need to be aware of state and federal laws regarding employment discrimination. It's fair however to require that employees support your mission, vision, values, etc. But if you have a Statement of Faith that they must sign, or have a policy of hiring only Christians, we strongly recommend that you check with local legal counsel to ensure that you are not running afoul of city, state or federal anti-discrimination laws, that you are properly incorporated as a religious organization, etc.]

10. Did you receive sufficient training from the applicable federal agency about rules of faith engagement?

11. How much training was provided (by the feds)? Could you have used more? Was it easy to get a hold of the help you needed?

12. How did you go about training your employees/volunteers about the rules of faith engagement/religious activities with grant $$?

13. Were there any complaints about religious activities? [Might be difficult to answer if no one complains to the Center – the Center simply may not be aware of any complaints.]