Arkansas Republican Governor Asa Hutchinson has just announced his decision on a highly controversial and discriminatory “religious freedom” bill.
Arkansas will not yet join the ranks of states like Indiana that have enacted so-called “religious freedom” laws.
In his press conference minutes ago, Governor Asa Hutchinson, who days ago had stated he would sign the Arkansas Religious Freedom Restoration Act into law, said now that “in ordinary times this bill would not be controversial, but these are not ordinary times.”
He added the bill is “divisive,” has “divided families,” and said there is a “generational gap,” noting his own son signed a petition asking him to not sign the bill.
The Governor announced he is sending the bill, HB 1228, back to the legislature so that it reflects the federal RFRA law, and is not expanded to look like the Indiana law.
Hutchinson said “Arkansas wants to be a place of tolerance,” and wants to balance religious freedom and protections.
While supporters of these anti-gay laws are claiming they “mirror” the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act, they do not.
I Â its current form, the Arkansas bill, like the one in Indiana that has attracted condemnation from major corporations, civil rights organizations, local Indiana residents and businesses, and even the NCAA and NASCAR, expands greatly on the federal framework.
One major difference is the Arkansas bill and the Indiana law grant personhood status to businesses, non-profits, corporations, and other organizations, allowing them to have “conscience rights,” and to discriminate at will.
The governor did not indicate with great specificity what changes he wants, so an updated bill will have to be examined.
He also announced he may sign an executive order to “set the right example of tolerance and frame the debate.”
He did indicate he wants to sign an RFRA, and did not suggest the legislature scrap the bill.
UPDATE 12:00 PM EST –
Gov. Hutchinson, in answering questions from reporters, declined to address the possibility of a nondiscrimination law for LGBT people.
“I don’t believe in a workplace that discriminates,” he added.
He said he is “concerned” about how the RFRAs are being viewed nationally, but “we are an international community.”
“It’s also about communicating to the world that we are a state that recognizes diversity.”
One reporter asked why changes are necessary since lawmakers claimed “this is the same law” as the federal RFRA. The Governor said he couldn’t speak for lawmakers.
“This conversation will continue,” he concluded.
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This is a developing story – stay tuned for more details.