American Jewish Congress v. Bost was an Establishment Clause lawsuit concerning the separation of church and state in Brenham, Texas.[1] The case was the first constitutional challenge to a charitable choice contract.[2]
In the community of Brenham, Texas, the American Jewish Congress and the Texas Civil Rights Project filed a lawsuit against a social services program who they believe used a tax funded jobs program to support religious practices which violated the separation of church and state. Other accusations include; use of funds to proselytize, purchase bibles, and coerce participants to "accept Jesus."[3] [4] On May 21, 2002, the Houston Chronicle reported that the case would be sent to federal district court.[5]
The Rockefeller Institute of Government reported that the lawsuit is a response to the 1996 gathering of a number of churches and businesses in Brenham, Texas, that formed the "Jobs Partnership of Washington County," a program which has come under legal scrutiny.
The Texas Freedom Network, a nonpartisan organization, reported that, "The religious message seemed to have a coercive impact on clients. About one-third of the participants said in the program evaluation that they felt pressure to join the host church, Grace Fellowship Baptist Church."[6]
The lawsuit went back and forth between state and federal courts and was twice appealed. In January 2003, the lawsuit that is believed to the first constitutional challenge to a “charitable choice” contract, came to a conclusion. The case was finally dismissed, "on the ground that there was no live controversy."