Sen. Marty Harbin introduces the Religious Freedom Restoration Act

Sen. Marty Harbin (R–Tyrone) issued the following statement on Senate Bill 221:

“Today [Feb. 27] I introduced Senate Bill 221, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

This simple legislation would meet the Supreme Court’s 1997 requirement that if a state wants to protect the first amendment right of religious freedom from government incursion it must pass this federal legislation at the state level.

So far 31 states have done this, and it is past time for Georgia to do so as well. This legislation is currently in place in Virginia, the site of one of Amazon’s new headquarters.

This legislation would require the government to have a compelling interest before it could interfere with someone’s religious practices. It would also require the government, in cases where interfering is necessary, to do so in the least invasive way possible.”