Tilton et al. v. Richardson, Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, et al.

Decided June 28, 1971. Warren Earl Burger delivered the opinion of the Court.

Docket 153 · 403 U.S. 672 (1971) · Cited 569 times

Holding

The Act is constitutional except for that portion providing for a 20-year limitation on the religious use of the facilities constructed with federal funds.

The Court’s statement of the holding, from the opinion’s syllabus. The syllabus is prepared by the Reporter of Decisions and is not part of the opinion of the Court — read the official opinion for authority.

How the Justices voted

“Concurring” means agreeing with the outcome; any split shown is the Court’s judgment, not each Justice’s reasoning. Source: the Supreme Court Database (Spaeth et al.), Washington University.

Precedents cited

Supreme Court decisions this opinion relies on, ordered by how often it cites each. Cases in our collection link through; others are named.

• Board of Ed. of Central School Dist. No. 1 v. Allen · 392 U.S. 236 (1968)
• Everson v. Board of Ed. of Ewing · 330 U.S. 1 (1947)
• Walz v. Tax Comm'n of City of New York · 397 U.S. 664 (1970)
• Engel v. Vitale · 370 U.S. 421 (1962)
• National Labor Relations Board v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp. · 301 U.S. 1 (1937)
• United States v. Jackson · 390 U.S. 570 (1968)
• Rosado v. Wyman · 397 U.S. 397 (1970)
• Wickard v. Filburn · 317 U.S. 111 (1942)
• Torcaso v. Watkins · 367 U.S. 488 (1961)
• Champlin Rfg. Co. v. Corporation Commission of Oklahoma · 286 U.S. 210 (1932)
• Lane v. Wilson · 307 U.S. 268 (1939)
• Ivanhoe Irrigation District v. McCracken · 357 U.S. 275 (1958)

Cited by

Later Supreme Court opinions in our collection that cite this case.

• Roemer v. Board of Public Works of Md. · 426 U.S. 736 (1976)
• Bowen v. Kendrick · 487 U.S. 589 (1988)
• Mitchell v. Helms · 530 U.S. 793 (2000)
• Committee for Public Education & Religious Liberty v. Nyquist · 413 U.S. 756 (1973)
• Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Comer · 582 U.S. 449 (2017)
• Widmar v. Vincent · 454 U.S. 263 (1981)
• Rosenberger v. Rector & Visitors of University of Virginia · 515 U.S. 819 (1995)
• Espinoza v. Montana Dept. of Revenue · 591 U.S. 464 (2020)
• Lynch v. Donnelly · 465 U.S. 668 (1984)
• Wallace v. Jaffree · 472 U.S. 38 (1985)
• Hunt v. McNair · 413 U.S. 734 (1973)
• Valley Forge Christian College v. Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Inc. · 454 U.S. 464 (1982)
• County of Allegheny v. American Civil Liberties Union · 492 U.S. 573 (1989)
• Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. · 551 U.S. 587 (2007)
• Aguilar v. Felton · 473 U.S. 402 (1985)
• Edwards v. Aguillard · 482 U.S. 578 (1987)
• Marsh v. Chambers · 463 U.S. 783 (1983)
• School District of Grand Rapids v. Ball · 473 U.S. 373 (1985)
• Zelman v. Simmons-Harris · 536 U.S. 639 (2002)
• Wolman v. Walter · 433 U.S. 229 (1977)
• Norwood v. Harrison · 413 U.S. 455 (1973)
• Wisconsin v. Yoder · 406 U.S. 205 (1972)
• Thomas v. Union Carbide Agricultural Products Co. · 473 U.S. 568 (1985)
• Lemon v. Kurtzman · 411 U.S. 192 (1973)
• Board of Ed., Island Trees Union Free School Dist. No. 26 v. Pico · 457 U.S. 853 (1982)
• Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church & School v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission · 565 U.S. 171 (2012)
• Alaska Airlines, Inc. v. Brock · 480 U.S. 678 (1987)
• Mueller v. Allen · 463 U.S. 388 (1983)
• Meek v. Pittenger · 421 U.S. 349 (1975)
• Locke v. Davey · 540 U.S. 712 (2004)

Official text

Read the official opinion (U.S. Reports, govinfo.gov)

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Source: Supreme Court of the United States, slip opinions (1971). Citation count from the Free Law Project’s CourtListener bulk data. Data last verified 2026-07-03. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).