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THE
WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
January 29, 2001
EXECUTIVE
ORDER
ESTABLISHMENT
OF WHITE HOUSE OFFICE OF FAITH-BASED
AND COMMUNITY INITIATIVES
By the authority vested in me as President of the United
States by the Constitution and the laws of the United States
of America, and in order to help the Federal Government
coordinate a national effort to expand opportunities for
faith-based and other community organizations and to strengthen
their capacity to better meet social needs in America's
communities, it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Policy. Faith-based and other community
organizations are indispensable in meeting the needs of
poor Americans and distressed neighborhoods. Government
cannot be replaced by such organizations, but it can and
should welcome them as partners. The paramount
goal is compassionate results, and private and charitable
community groups, including religious ones, should have
the fullest opportunity permitted by law to compete on a
level playing field, so long as they achieve valid public
purposes, such as curbing crime, conquering addiction, strengthening
families and neighborhoods, and overcoming poverty. This
delivery of social services must be results oriented and
should value the bedrock principles of pluralism, nondiscrimination,
evenhandedness, and neutrality.
Sec. 2. Establishment. There is established a
White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives
(White House OFBCI) within the Executive Office of the President
that will have lead responsibility in the executive branch
to establish policies, priorities, and objectives for the
Federal Government's comprehensive effort to enlist, equip,
enable, empower, and expand the work of faith-based and
other community organizations to the extent permitted by
law.
Sec. 3. Functions. The principal functions of
the White House OFBCI are, to the extent permitted by law: (a)
to develop, lead, and coordinate the Administration's policy
agenda affecting faith-based and other community programs
and initiatives, expand the role of such efforts in communities,
and increase their capacity through executive action, legis-lation,
Federal and private funding, and regulatory relief;
(b) to ensure that Administration and Federal
Government policy decisions and programs are consistent
with the President's stated goals with respect to faith-based
and other community initiatives;
(c) to help integrate the President's policy
agenda affecting faith-based and other community organizations
across the Federal Government;
(d) to coordinate public education activities
designed to mobilize public support for faith-based and
community nonprofit initiatives through volunteerism, special
projects, demonstration pilots, and public-private partnerships;
(e) to encourage private charitable giving to
support faith-based and community initiatives;
(f) to bring concerns, ideas, and policy options
to the President for assisting, strengthening, and replicating
successful faith-based and other community programs;
(g) to provide policy and legal education to
State, local, and community policymakers and public officials
seeking ways to empower faith-based and other community
organizations and to improve the opportunities, capacity,
and expertise of such groups;
(h) to develop and implement strategic initiatives
under the President's agenda to strengthen the institutions
of civil society and America's families and communities;
(i) to showcase and herald innovative grassroots
nonprofit organizations and civic initiatives;
(j) to eliminate unnecessary legislative, regulatory,
and other bureaucratic barriers that impede effective faith-based
and other community efforts to solve social problems;
(k) to monitor implementation of the President's
agenda affecting faith-based and other community organizations;
and
(l) to ensure that the efforts of faith-based
and other community organizations meet high standards of
excellence and accountability.
Sec. 4. Administration. (a) The White House OFBCI
may function through established or ad hoc committees, task
forces, or interagency groups.
(b) The White House OFBCI shall have a staff
to be headed by the Assistant to the President for Faith-Based
and Community Initiatives. The White House OFBCI
shall have such staff and other assistance, to the extent
permitted by law, as may be necessary to carry out the provisions
of this order. The White House OFBCI operations
shall begin no later than 30 days from the date of this
order.
(c) The White House OFBCI shall coordinate with
the liaison and point of contact designated by each executive
department and agency with respect to this initiative.
(d) All executive departments and agencies (agencies)
shall cooperate with the White House OFBCI and provide such
information, support, and assistance to the White House
OFBCI as it may request, to the extent permitted by law.
(e) The agencies? actions directed by this Executive
Order shall be carried out subject to the availability of
appropriations and to the extent permitted by law.
Sec. 5. Judicial Review. This order
does not create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
enforceable at law or equity by a party against the United
States, its agencies or instrumentalities, its officers
or employees, or any other person.
GEORGE
W. BUSH
THE
WHITE HOUSE, January 29, 2001.
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