Establishment of White House Office of Faith- Based and Community Initiatives

Executive Order 13199 of January 29, 2001

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, legislation, 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.

    (Presidential Sig.)B

THE WHITE HOUSE,

     January 29, 2001.