Idaho committee soundly defeats bill riddled with constitutional, legal concerns

BOISE, Idaho – The State Affairs Committee of the Idaho House voted 13-4 Thursday to reject a deeply problematic bill that Alliance Defending Freedom had said in oral testimony and in written legal analysis “will threaten First Amendment and statutory freedoms and expose the State to legal and fiscal liability.”

House Bill 2 would have added the categories of “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to the state’s nondiscrimination laws without sufficient religious or conscience protections. In other states, these sorts of bills have led to violations of religious freedom and freedom of speech by forcing those with different views to act or speak contrary to their beliefs. In some cases, they have also led to endangering the safety and privacy of women and children by opening public restrooms to members of the opposite sex.

“The government must respect every American’s freedom of speech and freedom of religion. These fundamental liberties are so precious that they are specifically protected in the First Amendment,” said ADF Legal Counsel Ken Connelly, who testified before the committee. “Laws like these, despite the ‘discrimination’ rhetoric, are not designed for the benign purpose of ensuring that all people receive basic services and equal treatment. Their practical effect – as has been demonstrated across the country – is to legally compel people of diverse backgrounds and beliefs to accept, express, and promote messages, ideas, and events that violate their deepest convictions.”

The committee heard 20 hours of testimony from hundreds of Idaho citizens and national experts, and heard from thousands more Idahoans through e-mails and phone calls to representatives’ offices.

“The proposed legislation would have had adverse effects on churches, schools, and businesses, and would have interfered with the ability of every Idahoan to live and work according to the dictates of his or her conscience,” Connelly explained. “The proper role of government is to protect and affirm our freedoms, not to assign itself coercive powers over the lives and minds of citizens. The committee rightly refused to leave citizens open to legal attacks simply because they exercise their most basic constitutionally protected rights.”

ADF informed the committee of recent events – including legal threats by the city of Coeur d’Alene against two Christian pastors who run the Hitching Post Wedding Chapel – that came about as a result of similar laws to HB 2. The evidence presented during testimony suggested that the proposed legislation would not prevent lawsuits or actions being taken against local churches, religious schools, and other religious ministries that have worked for many years to benefit the community and help the needy throughout the state.

“Passing the bill would have left Idaho’s job providers at risk of lawsuits if they made reasonable business decisions consistent with their religious convictions,” Connelly added.

The ADF legal memo provided examples from other locales that have enacted similar laws, including ones involving ADF clients in the cases of Arlene’s Flowers in Washington and Hands On Originals in Kentucky. As the memo explained, “each of these lawsuits has come about because sexual orientation and gender identity were added to the nondiscrimination law.”

Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization that advocates for the right of people to freely live out their faith.