Executive Order 13559: Fundamental Principles and Policymaking Criteria for Partnerships With Faith-Based and Other Neighborhood Organizations
President: Barack Obama
Required federal social-service partnerships to protect religious independence beneficiary choice and church-state safeguards.
Status: In effect. Is Executive Order 13559 still in effect? Yes. Executive Order 13559 remains in effect. See Federal Register record.
What does Executive Order 13559 do?
EO 13559 revised the rules for partnerships with faith-based and neighborhood organizations. It barred religious discrimination in grant eligibility, protected organizations’ religious identity, required federally funded services to be separated from explicitly religious activity and added beneficiary protections. Later administrations changed the surrounding White House office and some implementation details, but agencies still cite EO 13559 in current partnership regulations.
Before and after
Before the order
EO 13279 supplied the main government-wide rules, with uneven agency implementation and limited beneficiary protections.
After the order
Agencies received common principles for funding decisions, religious independence, referrals and separation of religious activities.
Who had to do what
| Agency / office | Action | Timing / position |
|---|---|---|
| Agency heads | Review and amend partnership rules | Implemented and continuing |
| Providers | Separate explicitly religious activity from federally funded services | Continuing |
| Agencies | Protect beneficiaries and make funding decisions without religious bias | Continuing |
What happened next
EO 13559 issued.
EO 13831 altered the initiative and later implementation.
Agencies restored and updated partnership safeguards under EOs 13559 and 14015.
EO 14148 revoked EO 14015 but did not list EO 13559.
Legal and source detail
How it works legally
The Establishment Clause, Free Exercise Clause, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, program statutes and agency regulations limit both discrimination against religious organizations and public funding of explicitly religious activity.
Sources by type
If a source is unavailable, first check the cited publisher or another official repository. The cited publisher remains the authority.
Primary and official sources
Orders, laws, court records and official implementation material.
How we checked this
Last checked against the sources above on September 15, 2026. How we research →