The Inside Scoop on Arkansas’ New Religious Freedom Law

Religious Freedom, , ,

IMG_6796Many people still do not fully understand Act 975, Arkansas’ new Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

What does this law do? Is it different from H.B. 1228, the first religious freedom bill the Arkansas Legislature sent to Governor Hutchinson? Why is this law even necessary?

We have the inside scoop.

Attorneys at Alliance Defending Freedom have prepared an excellent analysis of Act 975. They compare it with H.B. 1228 and Indiana’s religious freedom law.

You can download ADF’s excellent analysis of the law here.

Here is our analysis of Act 975:

The Inside Scoop on Arkansas’ New Religious Freedom Law

Summary: Act 975 of 2015, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), is a very strong law protecting religious liberty. It includes the same legal balancing test that is in federal RFRA, the RFRAs of 20 other states, and U.S. Supreme Court case-law dating back nearly a century. This law will protect the religious freedom of Arkansans in the same way that the other RFRAs have protected the rights of other Americans. It will protect the right of all Arkansans to live and work according to their faith by ensuring that they have a claim or defense to raise in court if the government tries to force them to violate their faith. (more…)

READ MORE

Is the Free Exercise of Religion Becoming an Intellectual Exercise?

1 CommentReligious Freedom, , ,

Recently the Arkansas General Assembly passed Act 975, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Many other states have established similar laws over the past two decades. Simply put, these laws say the state government cannot burden the free exercise of religion unless doing so furthers a compelling governmental interest—such as protecting children or public safety, and so forth.

Over the years, I have heard opponents of these laws comment that religion does not seem to be suffering in Arkansas. Some people have asked me how much more religious freedom we need—after all, there’s a church on almost every street corner in many of our communities.

These comments hint at an underlying assumption: Religion is something a person does for an hour or two every week. It’s a belief and a church service—an intellectual exercise, and nothing more.

That’s a shortsighted assumption.

(more…)

READ MORE

Religious Freedom Restoration Act Becomes Arkansas Law!

Religious Freedom, ,

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, April 2, 2015

On Thursday Family Council issued a statement applauding the Arkansas General Assembly and Governor Asa Hutchinson for passing Senate Bill 975, The Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

Family Council President Jerry Cox released a statement, saying, “We still maintain House Bill 1228, the original religious freedom law passed by more than two-thirds of both the Arkansas House and Arkansas Senate, was an excellent bill. However, Senate Bill 975 is also an excellent bill. As we keep saying, the original religious freedom bill, H.B. 1228, was the Rolls Royce of religious freedom laws, but S.B. 975, the replacement bill, is still a Cadillac.”

Cox said he appreciates the time and effort put into these bills by Arkansas’ legislators. “Being a lawmaker is not easy. I know many representatives and senators worked hard on these bills, particularly Representative Bob Ballinger and Senator Bart Hester. I believe Arkansans should be proud of their lawmakers for taking a stand for religious liberty and proud of Governor Hutchinson for signing a good bill into law.”

Cox said the Religious Freedom Restoration Act will protect religious liberty in Arkansas. “This law simply guards the free exercise of religion from government infringement. If the government tries to force you to act against your deeply-held convictions, this law helps guarantee your day in court to defend yourself for obeying your religious beliefs. That’s something everyone ought to be able to support.”

###

READ MORE