Written by Don Byrd
State legislative sessions are in full swing! Earlier in the week I posted about some developments in state legislation related to religious freedom. Here is an update of those and some additional stories from around the country:
In Tennessee, a broad school voucher proposal, which passed a key committee last month, has been stalled indefinitely after the bill sponsor discovered he lacked the votes to pass it in the House.
In Georgia, the House by a unanimous vote passed the “Pastor Protection Act,” which attempts to assure clergy the state will not require them to perform marriage ceremonies that violate their religious beliefs. As I discussed in an earlier post, the First Amendment already offers this protection.
In Wyoming, the House rejected a measure that “was designed to prevent state and local governments from penalizing people with sincerely held religious beliefs regarding natural marriage,” according to a Casper Star-Tribune report.
In Virginia, a House committee narrowly passed a bill that, according to the Washington Post, “says Virginia government agencies cannot punish any person or group from discriminating against anyone who is in a same-sex marriage, is transgender or . . . has sex outside marriage.”
In Oklahoma, a Senate Committee rejected a bill that “would have let individuals refuse service based on religious beliefs or conscience concerning marriage, lifestyle or behavior,” according to a Tulsa World report.
Have I missed anything? Send it my way on Twitter: @BJCBlog.
