New Jersey court says no to church grants

TRENTON, N.J. — The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled April 18 that government grants used to repair and restore 12 historic churches in Morris County, New Jersey, violated the state constitution’s ban on aid to religion.

The churches, all of which maintain active congregations, were awarded more than $4 million in government grants from 2012 to 2015 as part of a historic preservation project.

The court found the funds in question were used specifically for religious purposes — specifically to “sustain the continued use of active houses of worship for religious services and finance repairs to religious imagery” — and not for neutral purposes as was at issue in the U.S. Supreme Court’s Trinity Lutheran Church playground decision. (TAB)