LANSING, MI -- A Michigan House panel on Wednesday approved legislation that would allow adoption agencies to object to placement of a child due to "sincerely held religious beliefs" and prohibit the state from denying them funding or grants if they do so.

Critics say the three-bill package is a move toward state-sanctioned discrimination against same-sex couples looking to adopt, but supporters say the bills would prevent the state from discriminating against faith-based agencies.

The Republican-sponsored bills would write into law informal policies established by the Michigan Department of Human Services, which historically has allowed faith-based agencies to refuse placements that conflict with their religious tenets.

"The very basic (idea) of this whole bill is to codify what has been a good practice, a right practice and has been workable in our state for the better of 14,000 children," said state Rep. Ken Kurtz, R-Coldwater, who sponsored one of the bills and chairs the House Families, Children and Seniors Committee.

The panel approved all three bills along party lines, advancing the legislation to the House floor. Democrats attempted to introduced a series of amendments, but Kurtz called for a vote without considering additional changes to the bills, which have been amended several times in recent weeks after testimony from various interest groups and advocates.

Democrats were frustrated by the process. But Shelly Weisberg with the ACLU of Michigan, which strongly opposes the legislation, said it was unlikely any amendments would have improved what her group considers an underlying flaw with the package.

"The primary concern is that they're writing religious discrimination into law," Weisberg said. "We already know that many of the agencies do apply discriminatory practices, and they're using state money. But when you write it into law like that, you're basically inviting agencies to discriminate against anyone for any reason."

The Michigan Catholic Conference, which has backed similar legislation for years, celebrated Wednesday's vote as a victory for religious liberty. While it hasn't happened here, the conference says that Catholic agencies in Illinois, Massachusetts and San Francisco have chosen to close their doors rather than perform adoptions that violate their religious beliefs.

"A lot of people are saying this is discrimination," said communications director David Maluchnik. "What we feel (is) discriminatory is not allowing for faith-based agencies to operate within their first-amendment rights. So we're looking to prevent discrimination. We're looking to make sure there is diversity in child placement in Michigan."

As the bills move to the House floor, Speaker Jase Bolger intends to review the measures before taking an official position.

"(The speaker) believes we need to be careful to protect religious liberty and at the same time keep adoption as a high priority," said Bolger spokesperson Ari Adler. "It's about finding that proper balance. It may take a little time to do that, but that's our goal."

Jonathan Oosting is a Capitol reporter for MLive Media Group. Email him, find him on Google+ or follow him on Twitter.