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1993-04-27 - Constitutional Court, n. 195
A faith group without agreement with the State cannot be denied public funding for places of worship
Key facts of the case - The judicial review applied to provisions of Regional Act of Abruzzo n. 29 of 16 March 1988 regulating urban planning of religious services and providing public funding for the places of worship of the Catholic Church and the six religious denominations having an agreement with the State only.
Main reasoning of the court - The Constitutional Court declared the illegitimacy of Article 1 of Regional Act of Abruzzo n. 29 of 16 March 1988, on the grounds that it only provided for the funding of the places of worship of the Catholic Church and the six religious denominations having an intesa. The judges held that this difference of treatment amounted to discrimination. All religious denominations have the same right to enjoy religious freedom, regardless of the way they regulate their relationship with the State. A difference of treatment may only be based on objective grounds, such as the concerned religious community’s numerical size and distribution on the local territory.