FFRF has persuaded the city of Fitchburg, Wis., to not give away thousands of taxpayer dollars to a church project with stealth religious goals.

A concerned Fitchburg resident had contacted FFRF to report that the city granted $10,000 to Chapel Valley Church for four local events as part of the Healthy Neighborhood Initiative. In its application, the church explicitly assured the city that these events, called the Daniel Project, were “NOT for religious purposes.” However, the church’s subsequent discussions of the Daniel Project showed that the events were, in fact, designed specifically for church members to promote their religious beliefs to members of the community, particularly “people that would never step foot in a church.” The church emphasized that the purpose of these events was not merely secular, but was a “strategic” attempt to “pray and minister” to those in attendance.

It is unconstitutional for Fitchburg taxpayers to be forced to support religious events of this sort, FFRF had reminded the city. In a letter to Mayor Aaron Richardson, FFRF Staff Attorney Ryan Jayne had requested assurances that the city would terminate any existing contracts related to this project with the church, would not provide reimbursements for these religious events that have not already been paid and would not award any taxpayer funds to this church in the future. Additionally, FFRF’s letter noted, the city leadership should have flagged this policy violation on its own.

FFRF’s diligent sleuthing paid dividends for Fitchburg taxpayers.

“The city has not issued a reimbursement to Chapel Valley Church for their Healthy Neighborhoods grant and does not plan to,” the Fitchburg mayor recently emailed FFRF.