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coalition, whose members include local chapters of the Humanist Society, the Freedom from Religion Foundation, and the Secular Student Alliance.

“In order to have any efficacy in politics, we’re going to have to form some groups and start building communities,” she said.

A study released Tuesday by the Pew Research Center found that people with no religious affiliation make up the third-largest group worldwide, after Christians and Muslims. About 16 percent of people in the U.S. say they are religiously unaffiliated.

Herrod did not return calls seeking comment. The Center for Arizona Policy’s website says the Legislature has passed 114 bills supported by the center since 1995.

Rep. Debbie Lesko, R-Glendale, said the Republican-controlled Legislature is a socially and fiscally conservative body and that has aligned with the Center for Arizona Policy’s objectives. But the bills backed by the center aren’t injecting religion into politics, she said.

Lesko said her objective was to get government out of religion For more information about the Secular Coalition for Arizona, call 602-363-8018 or go to www.secularaz.org. when she sponsored legislation that allowed religious-affiliated companies to eliminate contraception coverage for their employees.

“The government was imposing a mandate and I allowed some organizations to opt out of that mandate,” she said. “There was some kind of thought that we were intruding on people’s lives. In my legislation, I wanted to do the opposite.”

Blain said the center’s lobbying activities could run afoul of its taxexempt status. The coalition and other groups this year filed a formal complaint with the IRS.

The secular coalition is registered as 501(c)4 political advocacy organization, which means their donations are taxed. The Center for Arizona Policy is a 501(c)3, so donations are tax-deductible, but the center is prohibited from supporting political candidates and is subject to limits on lobbying.