The Faith and Freedom Index scores state laws that affect faith-based, federally tax-exempt nonprofits. State scores are based on consistent benchmarks, and, therefore, the underlying state laws can be compared. The benchmarks measure each state’s “friendliness” to religious freedom and regulatory freedom for nonprofits. This Index is similar to popular surveys ranking states that are the most business-friendly, the best for retirement, or the best for raising a family. For more information, view our Press Release and Whitepaper.

Click on each state to view which states are friendly or unfriendly to faith-based nonprofit organizations.

The Overall Score is made up of two categories: Religious Freedom and Regulatory Freedom.

The Religious Freedom Category includes the following six factors: State Constitutional Protection of Free Exercise, State Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Freedom for Nonprofits with Public Programming, Religious Freedom for Faith-Based Employers, Protections for Religious Exercise During a State of Emergency, and State Blaine Amendments.

The Regulatory Freedom Category includes the following eight factors: Nonprofit Religious Corporation Law, Standards of Conduct for Directors of Religious Organizations, Charitable Registration Law, Audit Requirements Pursuant to Charitable Registration, Corporate Income Tax, Sales and Use Tax – Sales, Sales and Use Tax – Purchases, and Property Tax.
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How do we calculate these scores? View our methodology here and our full whitepaper (methodology and state profiles) here.
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