July 27, 2001
Source: The New York Times
On July 27, 2001, The New York Times reported that "in Missouri, residential schools and homes for troubled youths are exempt from virtually all state regulation if they are run by religious organizations...When it comes to exempting religious institutions from state laws and regulations, Missouri is not alone. Some states grant exemptions to religious academies or boarding homes; others allow day care centers run by religious groups to operate without licenses. Increasingly, legal experts say, religious organizations have been seeking and winning exemptions from other areas of the law."