The Public Expression of Religion Act - H.R. 2679 - provides that attorneys who successfully challenge government actions as violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment shall not be entitled to recover attorneys fees.

I found this bill in thomas as the "Veterans' Memorials, Boy Scouts, Public Seals, and Other Public Expressions of Religion Protection Act of 2006".

Check out the act description:

To amend the Revised Statutes of the United States to prevent the use of the legal system in a manner that extorts money from State and local governments, and the Federal Government, and inhibits such governments' constitutional actions under the first, tenth, and fourteenth amendments.

So protecting constitutional rights is now interpreted as extorting money from the government? This is unbelievable..

I can't help but notice this can now be referred to as the "PERP Act".

Veterans' Memorials, Boy Scouts, Public Seals, and Other Public Expressions of Religion Protection Act of 2006 -- H.R. 2679 -- provides that attorneys who successfully challenge government actions as violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment shall not be entitled to recover attorneys fees.

With regard to the Boy Scouts angle, see BSA Legal:

Boy Scouts of America appreciates Congress’ interest in the litigation facing Boy Scouts and the solution Congress is pursuing in the “Veterans’ Memorials, Boy Scouts, Public Seals, and Other Public Expressions of Religion Protection Act of 2006.” For the past decade, Boy Scouts as well as federal, state, and local governments that support Boy Scouts, have been the targets of ACLU lawsuits challenging Boy Scouts’ relationships with government entities. Those lawsuits seek to use the Establishment Clause to sever government relationships with Scouting merely because Boy Scouts pledge a nonsectarian promise to do their “duty to God.” Boy Scouts of America hopes that the Veterans’ Memorials, Boy Scouts, Public Seals, and Other Public Expressions of Religion Protection Act of 2006 will help eliminate this frivolous litigation against Scouting and government entities.

From the record:

The ACLU received $950,000 in a settlement with the City of San Diego in a case involving the San Diego Boy Scouts.

Also:

In Redlands, California, the city council reluctantly capitulated to ACLU's demands and agreed to change their official seal. But Redlands didn't have the municipal funds to revise police and firefighter badges that contained the old seal so, as reported by the Sacramento Bee, `rather than face the likelihood of costly litigation,' Redlands residents now `see blue tape covering the cross on city trucks, while some firefighters have taken drills to `obliterate it' from their badges.'

Further:

The official name of the City of Los Angeles (known as `The City of Angels') is `The Town of Our Lady the Queen of Angels of the Little Portion,' which refers to Mary, Mother of Jesus. Many other California cities contain religious references, including San Clemente, Santa Monica, Sacramento (named for the `Holy Sacrament'), San Francisco and San Luis Obispo (named for Saint Louis the Bishop). Under precedents groups like the ACLU are setting under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983, the very names of these cities are in legal jeopardy.

To the section which begins "including, but not limited to, a violation resulting from--", they might as well have added "(5) a government employee's particularly pious demeanor." How can you disagree with that? Shouldn't government employees have the same rights as everyone else, wi... [ Read More (0.2k in body) ]

The Public Expression of Religion Act - H.R. 2679 - provides that attorneys who successfully challenge government actions as violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment shall not be entitled to recover attorneys fees.