Bill Text: IA SF2170 | 2021-2022 | 89th General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: A bill for an act prohibiting the burdening of a person's free exercise of religion.(See SF 2284.)

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 7-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-02-15 - Committee report approving bill, renumbered as SF 2284. S.J. 296. [SF2170 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2021-SF2170-Introduced.html
Senate File 2170 - Introduced SENATE FILE 2170 BY J. TAYLOR , SCHULTZ , GARRETT , WILLIAMS , GREEN , JOHNSON , and COSTELLO A BILL FOR An Act prohibiting the burdening of a person’s free exercise of 1 religion. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 5844XS (2) 89 cm/jh
S.F. 2170 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 27D.1 Free exercise of religion —— 1 government burdening prohibited. 2 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a state 3 agency, political subdivision, or any elected or appointed 4 official or employee of this state or its political 5 subdivisions shall not do any of the following: 6 a. Treat religious conduct more restrictively than 7 comparable secular conduct because of alleged economic need or 8 benefit. 9 b. Treat religious conduct more restrictively than any 10 secular conduct of reasonably comparable risk. 11 c. Substantially burden a person’s exercise of religion 12 unless applying the burden to that person’s exercise of 13 religion in a particular situation is essential to further a 14 compelling governmental interest and is the least restrictive 15 means of furthering that compelling government interest. 16 2. Any person whose exercise of religion has been burdened 17 in violation of this chapter may file an action for damages, 18 injunctive relief, or other appropriate redress, or may assert 19 such violation as a defense in a judicial or administrative 20 proceeding. The plaintiff, if the prevailing party, may also 21 recover reasonable attorney fees and costs. 22 EXPLANATION 23 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 24 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 25 This bill prohibits a governmental entity from burdening 26 a person’s free exercise of religion. The bill prohibits 27 governmental entities from treating religious conduct more 28 restrictively than any secular conduct of reasonably comparable 29 risk or treating religious conduct more restrictively than 30 comparable secular conduct because of alleged economic need or 31 benefit. The bill provides that a governmental entity shall 32 not substantially burden a person’s free exercise of religion 33 unless the governmental entity can demonstrate that the action 34 constituting or resulting in the burden is in furtherance of a 35 -1- LSB 5844XS (2) 89 cm/jh 1/ 2
S.F. 2170 compelling governmental interest and is the least restrictive 1 means of furthering that interest. 2 The bill provides that a person whose free exercise of 3 religion has been burdened in violation of the bill may 4 assert that violation as a claim or defense in a judicial or 5 administrative proceeding, and provides that the governmental 6 entity may be liable for actual damages, attorney fees, costs, 7 and other appropriate remedies. The bill also allows the 8 person to obtain injunctive relief against the governmental 9 entity. 10 -2- LSB 5844XS (2) 89 cm/jh 2/ 2
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