Kentucky bill would allow lawsuits over violations of religious freedom

FRANKFORT - Kentucky lawmakers are looking to expand religious freedom protections.

House Bill 47, which allows private individuals to sue one another over religious freedom violations, passed out of the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday morning.

The bill allows people to sue any person acting "under the color of state law" and attempts to enforce a policy that "substantially burdens" a person's religious exercise.

Rep. Steve Rawlings, the bill's primary sponsor, told the committee that HB 47 is supposed to protect religious rights as religious people and houses of worship are facing "more and more government violations."

"We need to ensure that our Commonwealth has the strongest religious freedom act before these trends worsen," said Rawlings, R-Burlington.

In 2020 Sunrise Children's Services, which was one of Kentucky's largest private providers of services for children who have experienced abuse or neglect, ended its relationship with the state over a contract dispute. The state had refused to strike a sentence that conflicted with the agency's religious beliefs but wouldn't confirm if it was over sexual orientation discrimination.

Rep. Jason Nemes, R- Middletown, said HB 47 is necessary to ensure justice for people whose religious rights have been violated.

He brought up a 2019 lawsuit in which a Muslim woman sued Louisville Metro Corrections, saying her rights were violated when she was forced to remove her hijab in front of men for her jail booking photo. Removing her head covering in front of men who are not members of her family was against her Islamic beliefs, she said.

Critics of the bill said it would open up the opportunity for "frivolous lawsuits."

Kent Gilbert, chair of justice and advocacy for Kentucky Council of Churches and reverend of Union Church, said that the bills' broad definitions will make it easier for lawsuits to be brought forward.

"If we give ourselves the ability to sue one another and over how we currently are being offended, if we give private, certain individuals the ability to sue the government because they didn't get the special treatment they felt they were required, we weaken protection for all," Gilbert said.

Others at the meeting aired concerns that this will would allow discrimination and interfere with local fairness ordinances that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

"I do think that we have to be very careful when we say based on your religious belief that you're allowed to discriminate against people," said Rep. Keturah Herron, D-Louisville. "This is not what we need to be doing here in this Commonwealth, nor across the nation."

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Chris Hartman, executive director for the Fairness Campaign, said the bill could cause legal chaos by allowing conservative legal advocacy groups like Alliance Defending Freedom to "cash into" Kentucky tax dollars by suing cities and counties that enforce local ordinances.

Nemes said as supporter of the bill though that he would make sure it doesn't harm or interfere with fairness ordinances.

The bill passed out of committee on a 14-6 vote and heads to the full House.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Religious freedom protections could be expanded under House Bill 47