Breaking: Georgia House Passes Anti-Gay ‘Religious Freedom’ Pro-Discrimination Bill

Dangerous Legislation Passes House – Heads Back to Senate

The Georgia House just passed HB 757, a dangerous anti-gay bill that has been described as an “RFRA on steroids.” The vote for final passage of the bill was announced just this afternoon, a tactic Georgia lawmakers have used before to push through contentious legislation. The final vote was 104-65. The legislation, which passed the Senate last month by a vote of 38-14, now heads back to the Senate tonight for a final vote, then to the governor for his signature.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution today calls the bill the “culimination of two years of debate, attacks, counter-attacks and emotional rhetoric, and the fears of corporate leaders and gay rights advocates that it could legalize discrimination in Georgia.”

Leaders of the 1.3 million-member Georgia Baptist Mission Board have led the effort for the past two years, calling on lawmakers to pass bills they said would protect religious viewpoints and prevent discrimination against religious groups. This year, for the first time, they explicitly linked the effort to same-sex marriage after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that state prohibitions on same-sex marriage are unconstitutional.

While there were changes made to the bill along the way between its passage last month by the Senate and today’s vote, the bill, known also as FADA (First Amendment Defense Act), like many RFRAs that have been making their way around the nation’s legislatures this year, makes anti-LGBT discrimination legal by providing special protections for people who wish to claim their religious faith prohibits them from performing certain acts, including baking a cake for a same-sex wedding, or allowing a child to be adopted by a same-sex couple.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State analyzed the legislation last month, and concluded the bill “allows any individual or ‘faith-based’ business, non-profit entity, or taxpayer-funded organization to ignore any law that conflicts with their religious beliefs about marriage.”

While the new version is said by some to be a compromise bill narrower in scope, some LGBT activists described it as worse than the original.

Georgia House Democratic Minority Leader:

Some believe, or hope, Georgia’s Governor, Nathan Deal, will veto the legislation, and others believe there are enough votes to override his veto. 

Some responses via Twitter:

Georgia State Rep. Taylor Bennett made an impassioned plea:

Democratic Party of Georgia:

Others:

 

Image by Lori Geary via Twitter 

 

This is a breaking news and developing story. Details may change. This story will be updated, and NCRM will likely publish follow-up stories on this news. Stay tuned and refresh for updates.