Lemon v. Kurtzman

In Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971) 403 U.S. 602, the United States Supreme Court adopted a three-part test to determine whether a government practice violates the establishment clause of the First Amendment. In order for a government program to be constitutional: (1) the government program must have "a secular legislative purpose"; (2) the program's "principal or primary effect must be one that neither advances nor inhibits religion ..."; and (3) the program "must not foster 'an excessive government entanglement with religion.'" (Lemon, supra, at pp. 612-613.) In Lemon, the Supreme Court considered the constitutionality of a statute under which a state paid salary supplements to teachers who were employed by a religious organization and were teaching in parochial schools, as long as those teachers taught only courses offered in public schools and used only texts and materials used in public schools. (Lemon, supra, 403 U.S. at pp. 607, 615, 619.) The Lemon court concluded that an excessive entanglement with religion arose from the statutory scheme because "a comprehensive, discriminating, and continuing state surveillance will inevitably be required to ensure that these restrictions are obeyed and the First Amendment otherwise respected." (Id. at p. 619.)