US court to decide case on Bush's faith initiative

WASHINGTON, Dec 1 (Reuters) The US Supreme Court today agreed to decide whether a challenge can go forward arguing that President George W Bush's faith-based initiative violates the constitutional requirement on church-state separation.

The justices said they would hear a Bush administration appeal of a ruling that allowed a lawsuit by a Wisconsin group called the Freedom from Religion Foundation and three of its members to proceed.

In January 2001, right after he became president, Bush issued an executive order creating he White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives and similar centers in a number of federal agencies.

The White House said the purpose was to help religious and community groups compete for federal funding and to eliminate ''unnecessary legislative, regulatory and other bureaucratic barriers'' to their efforts to provide social services.

The lawsuit said administration officials violated the Constitution by organising national and regional conferences at which faith-based groups were singled out as being especially worthy of federal funding due to their religious orientation.

It said the officials made public appearances and gave speeches throughout the United States intended to promote and advocate funding for religious groups.

The Supreme Court will decide whether the group and its members as taxpayers have the legal right or standing to bring the lawsuit, and thus whether the challenge can go forward or must be dismissed.

The justices are not ruling on the constitutionality of the initiative.

A federal judge initially dismissed the lawsuit. But a US appeals court said it could go forward and ruled taxpayers could challenge executive-branch actions said to promote religion that are financed by general congressional appropriations.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments in the case at the end of February, with a decision due by June.

REUTERS SBA BST0235