The Secular Coalition for America (SCA) -- a 501(c)(4) advocacy organization whose purpose is to amplify the diverse and growing voice of the nontheistic community in the United States --has graded the U.S. House of Representatives on matters important to secular Americans in their 2011 Congressional Report Card. Among those graded, Congressman Lou Barletta who represents the 11th congressional district in Pennsylvania received a failing grade of 14%.
Barletta and others were graded according to votes on seven pieces of legislation dealing with, according to the SCA's release, “aspects protecting and eroding religious liberty, religious privileging in law, discrimination against nontheistic Americans, the influence of religious dogma on the availability of health care and educational choices, and the effect of religious bias in science.”
According to the SCA's release, the following actions gave Barletta his failing score: Barletta voted to eliminate all federal funding for Planned Parenthood, transfer federal land to the Boy Scouts of America [an organization that discriminates against nontheistic Americans], expand federal funding for high school and elementary students in private religious schools in Washington D.C., allow certain church plans to be exempt from registration and disclosure requirements, affirm “In God We Trust” as the national motto of the United States in addition to encouraging public buildings to display said motto. Barletta also opposed legislation that would have acknowledged that climate change is occurring, is caused largely by human activities and poses significant risk.
Herb Silverman, president of the SCA, commenting on the report card, said, “The results of this report card show that our secular government struggles to be free from the encroachment of religion. The only way to protect everyone's right to religious freedom is to keep all religion out of government and leave it free for the individual to pursue or not.”
More information about the SCA and its 2011 Congressional Report Card -- including grades for congressional representatives from all states in the union -- can be found on the SCA's website.
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