The Policy Environment for Faith-Based Social Services in the United States: What has Changed Since 2002: Results of a 50-State Study

This follow up study (to a similar 2003 study) by Mark Ragan, Senior Fellow, and David J. Wright, Project Director of the Roundtable on Religion and Social Welfare Policy investigates the degree of acceptance of Faith Based Organizations (FBO) as social service providers at the federal and state levels.

Due to the emphasis on the President's Faith-Based and Community Initiative (FBCI) on the federal level, many federal agencies have created offices devoted to implementing the initiative in many programs. Sixty-three percent of states have created partnerships with FBO, up from only forty-eight percent in 2003. More than half the states have implemented significant administrative activities to engage FBOs as social service providers, up from only a third of states in 2003. 

The FBCI has not penetrated state agencies in the same degree as the federal agencies for several reasons. 
States have less financial cushioning, and the public (and states) have turned attention away from welfare reform. Current concerns center around maintaining basic service levels; new initiatives are a luxury, so there are fewer opportunities to form funding partnerships. 
In some states, FBOs have been integrated into local social service systems, thus there is no need to create an additional initiative. 
Some state constitutions have restrictive clauses about enriching or supporting religious institutions. Thirty-seven states have such barriers.