Text of KY HB 372 (2018)

UNOFFICIAL COPY 18 RS BR 1466 Page 1 of 7 XXXX Jacketed AN ACT relating to protections of religious organizations. 1 Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2 SECTION 1. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 344 IS CREATED TO 3 READ AS FOLLOWS: 4 The General Assembly finds and declares the following: 5 (1) Leading legal scholars concur that conflicts between same-sex marriage and 6 religious liberty are real and should be addressed through legislation; 7 (2) After the legalization of same-sex marriage, a religious educational institution in 8 Massachusetts was threatened by the government with loss of accreditation 9 because of its sincerely held religious beliefs about marriage; 10 (3) Citizens of the state hold a wide range of reasonable views on the issue of same- 11 sex marriage, and maintaining the state’s commitment to religious freedom when 12 faced with these good-faith differences of opinion is vital; 13 (4) Our nation has a long and honorable history of respecting and accommodating 14 the religious freedom of its people, dating from before the American Revolution 15 to the present. Laws have protected the right of Quakers and other pacifists to 16 serve the nation as noncombatants in times of war, the right of Jews and other 17 Sabbath observers to dedicate their time to God and family instead of work on 18 their Sabbath, and the right of religious organizations to provide charitable 19 services to the public consistent with their beliefs, by hiring individuals who share 20 the same beliefs; 21 (5) Protecting religious freedom from government intrusion is a state interest of the 22 highest order. This legislation advances this interest by remedying, deterring, and 23 preventing government interference with religious exercise in a way that 24 complements the protections mandated by the state and federal constitutions; 25 (6) Protecting the religious freedom of faith-based charities and educational 26 institutions serves the state’s compelling interest in providing essential social 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 18 RS BR 1466 Page 2 of 7 XXXX Jacketed services to the poor and educational opportunities to the next generation. This is 1 consistent with the state’s long tradition of cooperating with religious 2 organizations when providing these critical services; 3 (7) Kentucky adopted the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in 2013, when it 4 enacted KRS 446.350 making clear that it is unlawful to substantially burden a 5 person’s exercise of religion, even if the burden results from a facially neutral 6 rule of general applicability, unless that application of the burden to the person is 7 both in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest, and the least 8 restrictive means of furthering that compelling governmental interest; 9 (8) Laws and government actions that protect the free exercise of religious beliefs 10 and moral convictions about marriage and human sexuality encourage private 11 citizens and institutions to demonstrate tolerance for those beliefs and convictions 12 and therefore contribute to a more respectful, diverse, and peaceful society; and 13 (9) In a pluralistic society in which people of good faith hold more than one (1) view 14 of marriage, it is possible for the government to recognize same-sex marriage 15 without forcing persons with sincerely held religious beliefs or moral convictions 16 to conform. 17 SECTION 2. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 344 IS CREATED TO 18 READ AS FOLLOWS: 19 As used in Sections 1 to 6 of this Act: 20 (1) "Discriminatory actions" means and includes any action taken by the state 21 government to: 22 (a) Alter in any way the tax treatment of, or cause any tax, penalty, or payment 23 to be assessed against, or deny, delay, revoke, or otherwise make 24 unavailable an exemption from taxation of any religious organization; 25 (b) Disallow, deny, or otherwise make unavailable a deduction for state tax 26 purposes of any charitable contribution made to or by a religious 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 18 RS BR 1466 Page 3 of 7 XXXX Jacketed organization; 1 (c) Withhold, reduce, exclude, terminate, materially alter the terms or 2 conditions of, or otherwise make unavailable or deny any state grant, 3 contract, subcontract, cooperative agreement, guarantee, loan, scholarship, 4 or other similar benefit, from or to any religious organization; 5 (d) Withhold, reduce, exclude, terminate, materially alter the terms or 6 conditions of, or otherwise make unavailable or deny any entitlement or 7 benefit under a state benefit program from or to any religious organization; 8 (e) Impose, levy, or assess a monetary fine, fee, penalty, damages award, or 9 injunction; 10 (f) Withhold, reduce, exclude, terminate, materially alter the terms or 11 conditions of, or make unavailable or deny any license, certification, 12 accreditation, custody award or agreement, diploma, grade, recognition, or 13 other similar benefit, position, or status from or to any religious 14 organization; or 15 (g) Refuse to hire or promote, force to resign, fire, demote, sanction, discipline, 16 materially alter the terms or conditions of employment, retaliate, or take 17 other adverse employment action against a person employed or 18 commissioned by state government; 19 (3) "Religious organization" means: 20 (a) A house of worship, including but not limited to churches, synagogues, 21 shrines, mosques, and temples; 22 (b) A religious group, corporation, association, school or educational 23 institution, ministry, order, society, or similar entity, regardless of whether it 24 is integrated or affiliated with a church or other house of worship; or 25 (c) An officer, owner, employee, manager, religious leader, clergy, or minister 26 of an entity or organization described in this subsection; 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 18 RS BR 1466 Page 4 of 7 XXXX Jacketed (4) "State benefit program" means any program administered or funded by the state, 1 or by an agent on behalf of the state, providing cash payments, grants, contracts, 2 loans, or in-kind assistance; and 3 (5) "State government" means: 4 (a) The state or a political subdivision of the state; 5 (b) Any agency of the state or of a political subdivision of the state including a 6 department, bureau, board, commission, council, court, or public institution 7 of higher education; 8 (c) Any person acting under the color of state law; 9 (d) Any private person suing under or attempting to enforce a law, rule, or 10 regulation adopted by a government entity described in paragraph (a), (b), 11 or (e) of this subsection; or 12 (e) Any city, county, urban-county government, charter county government, 13 unified local government, consolidated local government, special district, or 14 any combination thereof of the Commonwealth. 15 SECTION 3. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 344 IS CREATED TO 16 READ AS FOLLOWS: 17 The sincerely held religious beliefs or moral convictions protected by Sections 1 to 6 of 18 this Act are the belief or convictions: 19 (1) Regarding the sex of the two (2) individuals who may enter into a marriage; and 20 (2) That male and man or female and woman refer to an individual's immutable 21 biological sex as objectively determined by anatomy and genetics by or at the time 22 of birth. 23 SECTION 4. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 344 IS CREATED TO 24 READ AS FOLLOWS: 25 (1) State government shall not take any discriminatory action against a religious 26 organization wholly or partially on the basis that the organization: 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 18 RS BR 1466 Page 5 of 7 XXXX Jacketed (a) Solemnizes or declines to solemnize any marriage, or provides or declines to 1 provide services, accommodations, facilities, goods, or privileges for a 2 purpose related to the solemnization, formation, celebration, or recognition 3 of any marriage, based upon or in a manner consistent with a sincerely held 4 religious belief or moral conviction described in Section 3 of this Act; 5 (b) Makes any employment-related decision, including but not limited to the 6 decision whether or not to hire, terminate, or discipline an individual whose 7 conduct or religious beliefs are inconsistent with those of the religious 8 organization, based upon or in a manner consistent with a sincerely held 9 religious belief or moral conviction described in Section 3 of this Act; or 10 (c) Makes any decision concerning the sale, rental, occupancy of, or terms and 11 conditions of occupying a dwelling or other housing under its control, based 12 upon or in a manner consistent with a sincerely held religious belief or 13 moral conviction described in Section 3 of this Act. 14 (2) State government shall consider accredited, licensed, or certified any religious 15 organization that would otherwise be accredited, licensed, or certified, 16 respectively, for any purposes under state law but for a determination against 17 such religious organization wholly or partially on the basis that the religious 18 organization believes, speaks, or acts in accordance with a sincerely held 19 religious belief or moral conviction described in Section 3 of this Act. 20 SECTION 5. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 344 IS CREATED TO 21 READ AS FOLLOWS: 22 (1) A religious organization may assert a violation of Sections 1 to 6 of this Act as a 23 claim against state government in any judicial or administrative proceeding or as 24 a defense in any judicial or administrative proceeding without regard to whether 25 the proceeding is brought by or in the name of state government, private person, 26 or any other party. 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 18 RS BR 1466 Page 6 of 7 XXXX Jacketed (2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an action under Sections 1 to 6 of 1 this Act may be commenced, and relief may be granted, in a court of the state 2 without regard to whether the person commencing the action has sought or 3 exhausted available administrative remedies. 4 (3) Any religious organization who successfully asserts a claim or defense under 5 Sections 1 to 6 of this Act may recover: 6 (a) Declaratory relief; 7 (b) Injunctive relief to prevent or remedy a violation of Sections 1 to 6 of this 8 Act or the effects of such a violation; 9 (c) Compensatory damages for pecuniary and nonpecuniary losses; 10 (d) Reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs; and 11 (e) Any other appropriate relief, except that only declaratory relief and 12 injunctive relief shall be available against a private person not acting under 13 color of state law upon a successful assertion of a defense under Sections 1 14 to 6 of this Act. 15 (4) A religious organization shall bring an action to assert a claim under Sections 1 16 to 6 of this Act not later than two (2) years after the date that the person knew or 17 should have known that a discriminatory action was taken against that religious 18 organization. 19 (5) Sovereign, governmental, and qualified immunities to suit and from liability are 20 waived and abolished to the extent of liability created by this section, and a 21 person may sue state government, except state courts, for damages allowed by this 22 section. 23 (6) Notwithstanding subsection (5) of this section, Sections 1 to 6 of this Act do not 24 waive or abolish sovereign immunity to suit and from liability under the Eleventh 25 Amendment to the United States Constitution. 26 SECTION 6. A NEW SECTION OF KRS CHAPTER 344 IS CREATED TO 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 18 RS BR 1466 Page 7 of 7 XXXX Jacketed READ AS FOLLOWS: 1 (1) Sections 1 to 6 of this Act shall be construed in favor of a broad protection of free 2 exercise of religious beliefs and moral convictions, to the maximum extent 3 permitted by the state and federal constitutions. 4 (2) The protection of free exercise of religious beliefs and moral convictions afforded 5 by Sections 1 to 6 of this Act are in addition to the protections provided under 6 federal law, state law, and the state and federal constitutions. Nothing in Sections 7 1 to 6 of this Act shall be construed to: 8 (a) Preempt or repeal any state or local law that is equally or more protective of 9 free exercise of religious beliefs or moral convictions; 10 (b) Narrow the meaning or application of any state or local law protecting free 11 exercise of religious beliefs or moral convictions; and 12 (c) Prevent state government from providing, either directly or through an 13 individual or entity not seeking protection under Sections 1 to 6 of this Act, 14 any benefit or service authorized under state law. 15 (3) Sections 1 to 6 of this Act apply to, and in cases of conflict supersede, each statute 16 of the state that impinges upon the free exercise of religious beliefs and moral 17 convictions protected by Sections 1 to 6 of this Act, unless a conflicting statute is 18 expressly made exempt from the application of Sections 1 to 6 of this Act. 19 Sections 1 to 6 of this Act also apply to, and in cases of conflict supersede, any 20 ordinance, rule, regulation, order, opinion, decision, practice, or other exercise of 21 the state government’s authority that impinges upon the free exercise of religious 22 beliefs and moral convictions protected by Sections 1 to 6 of this Act. 23 (4) If any provision of Sections 1 to 6 of this Act or any application of the provision 24 to any particular person or circumstance is held to be invalid under law, the 25 remainder of Sections 1 to 6 of this Act and the application of its provisions to 26 any other person or circumstance shall not be affected. 27