Tennessee House hears from victims of de-banking
ADF attorneys, public figures available for media interviews at press conference following hearing Tuesday
WHO: Tennessee Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson, Tennessee Rep. Jason Zachary, Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Matt Sharp, director of the ADF Center for Public Policy; National Committee for Religious Freedom Senior Advisor Matt Goddard; Eric Bledsoe, senior fellow at The Foundation for Government Accountability; Bette Grande, policy director for the ProFamily Legislative Network
WHAT: Press conference following Tennessee House of Representatives’ Subcommittee on Banking and Consumer Affairs hearing concerning HB 2100, which protects consumers from de-banking because of their religious and political views
WHEN: Following the hearing, which begins at 1:30 p.m. CST, Tuesday, Feb. 27
WHERE: 8th floor, Conference Room E of the Cordell Hull Building, 425 Rep. John Lewis Way N., Nashville. To schedule an interview, contact ADF Media Relations Manager Jacqueline Ribeiro at (202) 961-9396.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys, National Committee for Religious Freedom Senior Advisor Matt Goddard, Tennessee Rep. Jason Zachary (sponsor of HB 2100), Tennessee Sen. Jack Johnson (sponsor of the companion Senate bill), Eric Bledsoe, senior fellow at The Foundation for Government Accountability, and Bette Grande, policy director for the ProFamily Legislative Network will be available for media interviews Tuesday after testifying before the Tennessee House of Representatives’ Subcommittee on Banking and Consumer Affairs regarding HB 2100, which protects consumers of every political and religious stripe against viewpoint-based discrimination in financial services.
“Everyone needs access to basic financial services no matter their political or religious beliefs,” said Sharp, who will testify before the subcommittee. “Banks that are too big to fail are too big for bias. Banks shouldn’t discriminate against people because of their religious or political views. Like the racial redlining of the past, this form of discrimination creates a two-tiered society. That’s wrong, and that’s what this bill seeks to stop in its tracks.”
A high-profile victim of viewpoint-based de-banking, the National Committee for Religious Freedom is chaired by former U.S. Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback. In 2022, NCRF had its deposit account closed by JPMorgan Chase with scant explanation. Bank of America has engaged in similar behavior, canceling the account of Memphis-based Indigenous Advance Ministries—a Christian nonprofit that helps impoverished widows and children in Uganda. The organizations are just two examples from a growing list of de-banking victims.
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.
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ABOUT Matt Sharp
Matt Sharp serves as senior counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom, where he is the director of the Center for Public Policy. In this role, he leads ADF's team of policy experts as they craft legislation and advise government officials on policies that promote free speech, religious freedom, parental rights, and the sanctity of human life. Since joining ADF in 2010, Sharp has authored federal and state legislation, regularly provides testimony and legal analysis on how proposed legislation will impact constitutional freedoms, and advises governors, legislators, and state and national policy organizations on the importance of laws and policies that protect First Amendment rights. He has twice testified before the U.S. Congress on the importance of protecting free speech and religious liberty in federal law. Sharp also authored an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of nearly 9,000 students, parents, and community members asking the court to uphold students’ right to privacy against government intrusion. Sharp earned his J.D. in 2006 from the Vanderbilt University School of Law. A member of the bar in Georgia and Tennessee, he is also admitted to practice in several federal courts.