Democrats are fighting back, reintroducing a bill in Congress to amend the Religious Freedom Restoration Act to prevent anti-LGBTQ discrimination.

Republicans in Georgia and Iowa Are Trying to Pass “Religious Freedom” Bills

Republican lawmakers in Georgia and Iowa are once again attempting to pass so-called “religious freedom” bills that would allow businesses to discriminate against LGBTQ people and others.

Georgia

Last week, Sen. Marty Harbin introduced Senate Bill 221, titled “The Religious Freedom and Restoration Act.” Previous attempts to enact such legislation in the state have failed, but those in favor are pushing ahead.

While former Republican Gov. Nathan Deal vetoed a “religious freedom” bill in 2016, current Republican Gov. Brian Kemp said he would sign such legislation into law, as long as it matched federal law, which was signed by former President Bill Clinton in 1993.

While the legislation is similar to the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act, it also includes provisions that would allow plaintiffs who win lawsuits against the government to recover their legal costs, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. It also would grant judges the power to order governments to change laws and practices deemed to infringe on religious beliefs.

“Extremist lawmakers seem prepared to put us in a negative national spotlight yet again, risking Georgia’s economic reputation and putting LGBT people in harm’s way,” said Jeff Graham, Executive Director of Georgia Equality, in a statement.

“The freedom for religion is important to all of us, including LGBT people. The idea that treating people fairly and equally under the law somehow erodes religious freedom is, frankly, false. This legislation would send our state in the wrong direction and will spark a painfully divisive debate just by its introduction.”

The bill is expected to make it through the Senate, but its fate in the House remains less clear.





Iowa

Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, photograph by Carol M. Highsmith

Earlier this month, Republicans in Iowa introduced “religious freedom” legislation in both the House and the Senate.

If passed, the identical bills would allow “a person whose exercise of religion has been burdened by state action [to] assert such violation as a claim or defense in a judicial or administrative proceeding.” It would not apply to jails, correctional facilities, or other detention centers.

The Iowa House and Senate are both under majority Republican control, and Gov. Kim Reynolds is also a member of the GOP. It is unclear if there’s enough support for it to pass and be signed into law, however, The Des Moines Register reports.

Last year’s attempts to pass such a bill failed to even make it to a floor vote in either chamber.

A Senate subcommittee voted in favor of the version in that branch, Senate File 240, on February 19. The House version, House File 258, was introduced on February 6 and referred to the Judiciary.

Business groups, fearing economic losses, have come out in opposition of the bills, including the Iowa Association of Business and Industry, the Iowa Chamber Alliance, and the Greater Des Moines Partnership.

“It really opens this gigantic can of worms,” said Keenan Crow, Director of Policy and Advocacy, at LGBTQ advocacy group One Iowa.

Democrats Counter

On the federal level, Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris, and Democratic Reps. Joe Kennedy III and Bobby Scott introduced the Do No Harm Act, which would amend the Religious Freedom Restoration Act to prevent it from being used to discriminate.

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“Specifically, the Do No Harm Act would limit the use of RFRA in cases involving discrimination, child labor and abuse, wages and collective bargaining, access to health care, public accommodations, and social services provided through government contract,” according to a statement.

“We cannot be equal or free if our government grants select Americans a license to discriminate against their neighbors under the guise of religious freedom,” said Kennedy (pictured above).

Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call

“The Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) was originally passed in 1993 as a response to a Supreme Court case which undermined the rights of religious minorities. Unfortunately, in recent years, bad faith interpretations of RFRA has been used to deny health care coverage for employees, claim exemptions to civil rights law, and impede justice in child labor and abuse cases,” explained Scott (above).

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“The freedom to worship is one of our nation’s most fundamental rights. That First Amendment guarantee should never be used to undermine other Americans’ civil rights or subject them to discrimination on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, or gender identity,” added Harris (above).

“I’m proud to reintroduce the Do No Harm Act in the Senate to more comprehensively protect the basic rights of every American.”