TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Equal Access Act (20 U.S.C. | 4071, et seq.)

1. Table of Questions Addressed

2. Introduction

    I.    The Supreme Court Requires Equal Access

The Mergens Facts: A Classic Equal Access Situation

The Supreme Court Upholds the Equal Access Act

Key Points of the Mergens Decision

Earlier Supreme Court Decisions Favoring Equal Access

The Graduation Prayer Decision Does Not Affect Equal Access

Summary of Supreme Court Decisions Regarding Religion and the Public Schools

    II.    The Equal Access Act is the Law

            A.    An Overview of the Equal Access Act

 

        Section 4071 (a) The Heart of the Legislation: Equal Treatment

        Section 4071 (b): The Trigger for the Equal Access Requirement: A Limited Open Forum

        Section 4071(c): A Safe Harbor That Successfully Fulfills the Act's Equal Access Requirement

        Section 4071 (d): What the Act Does Not Do

        Section 4071(e): Enforcement of the Act

        Section 4071 (f): The School Administrator Retains Disciplinary Authority

        Sections 4072, 4073 and 4074: Self-explanatory Provisions

 

            B. Legislative History of the Equal Access Act

3. Questions & Answers About the Equal Access Act

Who and What Are Covered by the Act?

When Is the Act Triggered?

What Does Not Violate the Act?

What Is a School Not Authorized to Do?

How Is the Act Enforced?

What Authority Does the School Retain?

Additional Questions

4. A Model Policy Implementing the Act

5. Footnotes

CHRISTIAN LEGAL SOCIETY, established in 1961, is a nationwide membership organization of Christian attorneys, judges, law professors and law students, as well as supportive laypeople.

The CENTER FOR LAW AND RELIGIOUS FREEDOM is CLS' legal advocacy arm and is highly regarded for its well-balanced briefs written by top church/state scholars. Through the Center, CLS advocates for religious liberty in cases involving the First Amendment's establishment and free exercise clauses, with particular emphasis on public education. CLS and the Center for Law and Religious Freedom served as a major legal resource for Congress in the drafting stages and at hearings on the Equal Access Act and have continued to be the acknowledged expert in cases involving the Act.

Copyright 1993 by Christian Legal Society.
No portion of the material may be copied without prior written approval of the Christian Legal Society, unless such use is insubstantial, done for review purposes or meets the standards set under current law.

(Paper Copy Information)
International Standard Book Number: 0-944561-22-5
Library of Congress Card Number: 93-72012
Printed in the United States of America

Edited by: Kimberlee W. Colby, Esq.
Center for Law and Religious Freedom, 4208 Evergreen Lane, Suite 222,
Annandale, Virginia 22003 - (703) 642-1070