In the United States, a religious freedom bill is a bill that, according to its proponents, allows those with religious objections to same-sex marriage to act in accordance with their beliefs without having to worry about being punished by the government for doing so. In contrast, opponents of such bills say that they allow people and businesses to discriminate against LGBT individuals.
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Arkansas
In April 2015, the governor of Arkansas, Asa Hutchinson, signed a religious freedom bill into law. The version of the bill he signed was more narrow in scope than the original version, which would have required state and local governments to demonstrate a compelling governmental interest to be able to infringe on someone's religious beliefs.
Georgia
In March 2016, the Georgia State Senate and the Georgia House of Representatives passed a religious freedom bill. On March 28, Georgia's governor, Nathan Deal, vetoed the bill after multiple Hollywood figures, as well as the Walt Disney Company threatened to pull future productions from the state if the bill became law. Many other companies had also been opposed to the bill, including the National Football League, Salesforce, the Coca-Cola Company, and Unilever.
Indiana
In March 2015, Mike Pence, the governor of Indiana, signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act into law, which allowed business owners who objected to same-sex couples on religious grounds to opt out of providing them services.
Mississippi
In April 2016, Phil Bryant, the governor of Mississippi, signed into law a bill that protects people who refuse to serve others on the basis of a religious objection to same-sex marriage, transgender people, or extramarital sex from government punishment.
Missouri
On March 9, 2016, the Missouri State Senate passed a religious freedom bill. Senate Democrats tried to stop the bill with a 39-hour filibuster, but Republicans responded by forcing a vote using a rarely used procedural maneuver, which resulted in the bill passing. In April, it was defeated 6-6 in a Missouri House of Representatives committee vote, with three Republicans joining three Democrats in voting against the bill.
South Dakota
On March 10, 2017, Dennis Daugaard, the governor of South Dakota, signed into law SB 149, which allows taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to deny services under circumstances that conflict with religious beliefs.