BOM15481 S.L.C.
114
TH
CONGRESS 1
ST
S
ESSION
S.
ll
To prevent discriminatory treatment of any person on the basis of views held with respect to marriage.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
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Mr. L
EE
(for himself, Mr. V
ITTER
, Mr. C
RUZ
, Mr. C
RAPO
, Mr. R
UBIO
, Mr. I
NHOFE
, Mr. R
OBERTS
, Mr. E
NZI
, Mr. P
ERDUE
, Mr. S
ESSIONS
, Mr. D
AINES
, Mr. G
RAHAM
, Mr. H
ATCH
, Mr. C
OTTON
, Mr. R
ISCH
, Mr. C
AS
-
SIDY
, Mr. R
OUNDS
, Mr. W
ICKER
, and Mr. S
ASSE
) introduced the fol-lowing bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
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A BILL
To prevent discriminatory treatment of any person on the basis of views held with respect to marriage.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
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tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
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This Act may be cited as the ‘‘First Amendment De-
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fense Act’’.
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SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
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Congress finds the following:
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2
BOM15481 S.L.C.
(1) Leading legal scholars concur that conflicts
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between same-sex marriage and religious liberty are
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real and should be legislatively addressed.
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(2) As the President stated in response to the
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decision of the Supreme Court on the Defense of
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Marriage Act in 2013, ‘‘Americans hold a wide
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range of views’’ on the issue of same-sex marriage,
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and ‘‘maintaining our Nation’s commitment to reli-
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gious freedom’’ is ‘‘vital’’.
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(3) Nevertheless, in 2015, when asked whether
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a religious school could lose its tax-exempt status for
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opposing same-sex marriage, the Solicitor General of
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the United States represented to the United States
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Supreme Court that ‘‘[i]t’s certainly going to be an
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issue’’.
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(4) Protecting religious freedom from Govern-
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ment intrusion is a Government interest of the high-
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est order. Legislatively enacted measures advance
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this interest by remedying, deterring, and preventing
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Government interference with religious exercise in a
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way that complements the protections mandated by
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the First Amendment to the Constitution of the
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United States.
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(5) Laws that protect the free exercise of reli-
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gious beliefs and moral convictions about marriage
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BOM15481 S.L.C.
will encourage private citizens and institutions to
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demonstrate tolerance for those beliefs and convic-
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tions and therefore contribute to a more respectful,
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diverse, and peaceful society.
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SEC. 3. PROTECTION OF THE FREE EXERCISE OF RELI-
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GIOUS BELIEFS AND MORAL CONVICTIONS.
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(a) I
N
G
ENERAL
.—Notwithstanding any other provi-
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sion of law, the Federal Government shall not take any
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discriminatory action against a person, wholly or partially
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on the basis that such person believes or acts in accord-
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ance with a religious belief or moral conviction that mar-
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riage is or should be recognized as the union of one man
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and one woman, or that sexual relations are properly re-
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served to such a marriage.
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(b) D
ISCRIMINATORY
A
CTION
D
EFINED
.—As used in
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subsection (a), a discriminatory action means any action
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taken by the Federal Government to—
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(1) alter in any way the Federal tax treatment
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of, or cause any tax, penalty, or payment to be as-
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sessed against, or deny, delay, or revoke an exemp-
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tion from taxation under section 501(a) of the Inter-
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nal Revenue Code of 1986 of, any person referred to
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in subsection (a);
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