Bill Text: OH HB376 | 2013-2014 | 130th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: To enact the Ohio Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Republican 41-4)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-02-26 - Committee Report [HB376 Detail]
Download: Ohio-2013-HB376-Introduced.html
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Representatives Derickson, Patmon
Cosponsors:
Representatives Henne, Smith, Hottinger, Grossman, Lynch, Amstutz, Hood, Huffman, Boose, McClain, Becker, Hayes, Burkley, Retherford, Young, Beck, Sears, Romanchuk, Barnes, Johnson, Stautberg, Sprague, Conditt, Hall, Scherer, Mallory, Adams, J., Brenner, Terhar, Buchy, Adams, R., Maag, Ruhl, Blessing, Green, Rosenberger, Thompson, Milkovich, Roegner, Hagan, C., Wachtmann, Hill, Blair
To enact sections 9.69, 9.691, and 9.692 of the | 1 |
Revised Code to enact the Ohio Religious Freedom | 2 |
Restoration Act. | 3 |
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 9.69, 9.691, and 9.692 of the | 4 |
Revised Code be enacted to read as follows: | 5 |
Sec. 9.69. Sections 9.69 to 9.692 of the Revised Code shall | 6 |
be known and may be cited as the Ohio Religious Freedom | 7 |
Restoration Act. | 8 |
Sec. 9.691. As used in sections 9.691 and 9.692 of the | 9 |
Revised Code: | 10 |
(A) "Burden" means any action that directly or indirectly | 11 |
constrains, inhibits, curtails, or denies the exercise of religion | 12 |
by any person or compels any action contrary to a person's | 13 |
exercise of religion. "Burden" includes, but is not limited to, | 14 |
withholding benefits, assessing criminal, civil, or administrative | 15 |
penalties, or exclusion from governmental programs or access to | 16 |
governmental facilities. | 17 |
(B) "Compelling governmental interest" means a governmental | 18 |
interest of the highest magnitude that cannot otherwise be | 19 |
achieved without burdening the exercise of religion. | 20 |
(C) "Exercise of religion" means the practice or observance | 21 |
of religion. "Exercise of religion" includes, but is not limited | 22 |
to, the ability to act or the refusal to act in a manner that is | 23 |
substantially motivated by one's sincerely held religious belief, | 24 |
whether or not the exercise is compulsory or central to a larger | 25 |
system of religious belief. | 26 |
(D) "State action" means the implementation or application of | 27 |
any law, including, but not limited to, state and local laws, | 28 |
ordinances, rules, regulations, and policies, whether statutory or | 29 |
otherwise, or any other action by the state, a political | 30 |
subdivision of the state, an instrumentality of the state or | 31 |
political subdivision of the state, or a public official that is | 32 |
authorized by law in the state. | 33 |
Sec. 9.692. (A) State action or an action by any person | 34 |
based on state action shall not burden a person's right to | 35 |
exercise of religion, even if the burden results from a rule of | 36 |
general applicability, unless it is demonstrated that applying the | 37 |
burden to that person's exercise of religion in that particular | 38 |
instance is both of the following: | 39 |
(1) Essential to further a compelling governmental interest; | 40 |
(2) The least restrictive means of furthering that compelling | 41 |
governmental interest. | 42 |
(B) A person whose exercise of religion has been burdened or | 43 |
is likely to be burdened in violation of this section may assert | 44 |
that violation or impending violation as a claim or defense in a | 45 |
judicial proceeding, regardless of whether the state or a | 46 |
political subdivision of the state is a party to the proceeding. | 47 |
The person asserting that claim or defense may obtain appropriate | 48 |
relief, including relief against the state or a political | 49 |
subdivision of the state. Appropriate relief includes, but is not | 50 |
limited to, injunctive relief, declaratory relief, compensatory | 51 |
damages, and the recovery of costs and reasonable attorney's fees. | 52 |