Indiana governor signs RFRA 'fix'

UPDATE: Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed into law an amendment to the state’s religious liberty bill that has caused a nationwide controversy. Pence tweeted that he signed the bill to make clear that “every person feels welcome & respected in our state.”

“There’ll be some who think bill goes too far, some who think it doesn't go far enough. As governor, I must always put the interest of IN 1st,” he added.

Earlier today, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed a religious liberty bill that lawmakers revised to address concerns similar to those voiced about the Indiana law.

OUR EARLIER REPORT (4:18 p.m.): Indiana lawmakers on Thursday afternoon passed an amendment to the state’s controversial new religious liberty law, but the so-called “fix” could severely undermine the protections the law is meant to uphold.

In a call with reporters today, a legal expert from The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty said the language of the amendment, announced Thursday morning, would potentially expose ministers, Mennonites, and other religious people to fines or jail time for refusing to violate their beliefs.

“The law doesn’t need a fix,” Mark Rienzi said of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act that Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed last week. The federal government and 19 other states already have some version of the law, known as RFRA. “In not a single case has the court held it can be used to discriminate against gay people,” Rienzi said.

Pence has not said whether he intends to sign the amendment into law.

Indiana’s passage of the original law unleashed a firestorm of criticism from liberal activists, media, and politicians, who said it would allow businesses to turn away gay customers. But the law makes no reference to sexual orientation. It is only meant to provide a legal framework for courts to decide how to handle lawsuits in which individuals or businesses claim their religious rights are being violated.

To try to quell the controversy, Pence asked legislators in Indianapolis to pass an amendment this week to clarify the purpose of the new law. The amendment states that Indiana’s RFRA “does not authorize a provider to refuse to offer or provide services, facilities, use of public accommodations, goods, employment, or housing … on the basis of race, color, religion, ancestry, age, national origin, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or United States military service.”

The amendment notes that a “provider” does not include a minister or churches and nonprofit organizations with tax-exempt status. Pence and both houses of the Indiana legislature must approve the amendment before it becomes law.

But Rienzi said the amendment would “carve” up religious liberties, potentially allowing the prosecution of a minister who officiates weddings for a fee and refuses to perform a same-sex ceremony. It could allow the prosecution of a pacifist Quaker or Mennonite for refusing to cater food at a Veterans Day event.

“We can put you in jail, and you don’t get the day in court RFRA normally allows,” Rienzi said. “That’s something we used to do 300 years ago in this country—put Quakers and Mennonites in jail for their beliefs.”

Alliance Defending Freedom also criticized the amendment today in a statement: “The new proposal unjustly deprives citizens their day in court, denies freedom a fair hearing, and rigs the system in advance. … Surrendering to deception and economic blackmail never results in good policy.”

Ryan Anderson, a fellow at The Heritage Foundation, wrote today that although the Indiana amendment doesn’t create new sexual orientation or gender identity privileges, it would stop Hoosiers from using religious objections under RFRA to protect themselves from municipal laws granting privileges to homosexuals or transgendered persons.

“In other words, it eliminates any balancing test for sexual liberty and religious liberty,” Anderson wrote. “It says sexual orientation should trump religious liberty. That’s bad policy.”

In an email to supporters, Micah Clark, the executive director of the American Family Association of Indiana, said it was “possible that the proposed changes may no longer protect a company like Hobby Lobby from participation in abortion matters.” His group, which supported the original legislation, called on Pence to veto the amendment.

Some businesses and organizations that criticized the religious liberty law, such as Eli Lilly and the NCAA, came out in support of Thursday’s proposal. “We are very pleased the Indiana legislature is taking action to amend Senate Bill 101 so that it is clear individuals cannot be discriminated against,” said Mark Emmert, president of the NCAA, in a statement.

But Angie’s List, which canceled a $40 million expansion of its headquarters in Indianapolis in protest of the religious liberty law, said the amendment didn’t go far enough. CEO Bill Oesterle has demanded a repeal of the entire law.

Meanwhile, the vitriol aimed at Indiana has extended to a rural pizza parlor. Memories Pizza in Walkerton, Ind., had to close its doors this week after a local ABC reporter asked the woman behind the counter, Crystal O’Connor, whether she would sell pizzas to a gay couple. O’Connor, whose family owns the business, said they would not offer pizza for a gay wedding because of their Christian beliefs.

After the ABC station ran the story, critics began posting vicious comments on the restaurant’s Facebook and Yelp pages. One person tweeted, “Who’s going to Walkerton with me to burn down Memories Pizza.” The tweet prompted a police investigation, and the O’Connors temporarily shut down the restaurant, saying they were receiving threatening phone calls. Someone started a website using a domain in the company’s name and posted a lewd photo.

The O’Connors clarified they were willing to serve gays in their restaurant, but simply objected to catering pizza for a homosexual wedding. A GoFundMe page has so far raised more than $200,000 in support of the family.

Rienzi said RFRA laws are intended to help judges hash out questions of gay rights while giving appropriate weight to religious liberty: “Death threats and arson threats are not the way we deal with disagreements in America.”

A Rasmussen poll released Wednesday found 70 percent of Americans believe a Christian photographer should be able to decline photographing a gay wedding.