Sandy-scarred houses of worship neglected by federal law
For all the rebuilding since Superstorm Sandy, damaged houses of worship have been left out in the cold due to federal prohibitions on direct aid to religious institutions. An attempt to amend the law and allow for such assistance in the case of natural disasters passed in the House but died in the Senate, and now one Congressman is asking local financial institutions to step up to the plate instead.
“I write to urge you to develop a low-interest rate loan program to assist with rebuilding the houses of worship located in areas such as Coney Island that were devastated by Superstorm Sandy,” read a letter from Congressman Hakeem Jeffries to the CEOs of JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Bank of America and Citibank. “Absent substantial engagement from the banking and financial services industry in a manner consistent with the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), many houses of worship in New York City badly damaged by the storm will remain uninhabitable.”
To emphasize the dire impact this lack of assistance has caused, a press conference was convened Wednesday morning at Coney Island’s United Community Baptist Church, which was flooded by Superstorm Sandy but where Pastor Connis Mobley hasn’t received a penny in financial support, and repair work hasn’t even begun.