State of Illinois
90th General Assembly
Legislation

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90_SB1591

      New Act
          Creates the Religious Freedom Restoration  Act.  Provides
      that State or local government may not substantially burden a
      person's  exercise  of  religion,  even if the burden results
      from a rule of general applicability, unless it  demonstrates
      that  application  of  the  burden  to  the  person (i) is in
      furtherance of a compelling governmental interest and (ii) is
      the least restrictive means  of  furthering  that  compelling
      governmental  interest.  Provides that if a person's exercise
      of religion has been burdened in violation of this Act,  that
      person  may  assert that violation as a claim or defense in a
      judicial proceeding and may obtain appropriate relief against
      a government; authorizes an  award  of  attorney's  fees  and
      costs to a prevailing party. Restricts concurrent exercise of
      home rule powers.
                                                     LRB9011515DJcd
                                               LRB9011515DJcd
 1        AN ACT concerning religious freedom.
 2        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 3    represented in the General Assembly:
 4        Section 1.  Short title.  This Act may be  cited  as  the
 5    Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
 6        Section 5.  Definitions.  In this Act:
 7        "Demonstrates"  means  meets the burdens of going forward
 8    with the evidence and of persuasion.
 9        "Exercise of religion" means an act  or  refusal  to  act
10    that  is substantially motivated by religious belief, whether
11    or not the religious exercise is compulsory or central  to  a
12    larger system of religious belief.
13        "Government"   includes  a  branch,  department,  agency,
14    instrumentality, and official (or other person  acting  under
15    color  of  law)  of  the  State  of  Illinois  or a political
16    subdivision of the State, including a home rule unit.
17        Section 10.  Findings and purposes.
18        (a) The General Assembly finds the following:
19             (1) The free exercise of religion  is  an  inherent,
20        fundamental,  and inalienable right secured by Article I,
21        Section 3 of the Constitution of the State of Illinois.
22             (2) Laws "neutral" toward religion, as well as  laws
23        intended  to interfere with the exercise of religion, may
24        burden the exercise of religion.
25             (3) Government should not substantially  burden  the
26        exercise of religion without compelling justification.
27             (4)  In  Employment  Division v. Smith, 494 U.S. 872
28        (1990)  the  Supreme  Court  virtually   eliminated   the
29        requirement  under  the  First  Amendment  to  the United
30        States Constitution that government  justify  burdens  on
                            -2-                LRB9011515DJcd
 1        the  exercise  of religion imposed by laws neutral toward
 2        religion.
 3             (5) In City of Boerne v. P. F. Flores,  65  LW  4612
 4        (1997)  the  Supreme  Court  held  that  an Act passed by
 5        Congress to address the matter of burdens placed  on  the
 6        exercise  of religion infringed on the legislative powers
 7        reserved to the states  under  the  Constitution  of  the
 8        United States.
 9             (6)  The  compelling  interest test, as set forth in
10        Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205 (1972), and Sherbert  v.
11        Verner,  374  U.S.  398  (1963),  is  a workable test for
12        striking sensible balances between religious liberty  and
13        competing governmental interests.
14        (b) The purposes of this Act are as follows:
15             (1)  To  restore the compelling interest test as set
16        forth in Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406  U.S.  205  (1972),  and
17        Sherbert v. Verner, 374 U.S. 398 (1963), and to guarantee
18        that  a  test of compelling governmental interest will be
19        imposed on all State and local (including home rule unit)
20        laws, ordinances, policies,  procedures,  practices,  and
21        governmental  actions  in  all  cases  in  which the free
22        exercise of religion is substantially burdened.
23             (2) To provide a claim or defense to  persons  whose
24        exercise   of   religion  is  substantially  burdened  by
25        government.
26        Section  15.   Free  exercise  of   religion   protected.
27    Government  may  not substantially burden a person's exercise
28    of religion, even if  the  burden  results  from  a  rule  of
29    general    applicability,   unless   it   demonstrates   that
30    application of the burden to the person (i) is in furtherance
31    of a compelling governmental interest and (ii) is  the  least
32    restrictive  means of furthering that compelling governmental
33    interest.
                            -3-                LRB9011515DJcd
 1        Section 20.  Judicial relief.  If a person's exercise  of
 2    religion  has  been  burdened  in violation of this Act, that
 3    person may assert that violation as a claim or defense  in  a
 4    judicial proceeding and may obtain appropriate relief against
 5    a  government.   A party who prevails in an action to enforce
 6    this  Act  against  a  government  is  entitled  to   recover
 7    attorney's  fees  and costs incurred in maintaining the claim
 8    or defense.
 9        Section 25.  Application of Act; home rule powers.
10        (a) This Act applies to all State  and  local  (including
11    home  rule  unit)  laws,  ordinances,  policies,  procedures,
12    practices, and governmental actions and their implementation,
13    whether  statutory or otherwise and whether adopted before or
14    after the effective date of this Act.
15        (b) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to authorize a
16    government to burden any religious belief.
17        (c)  Nothing in this Act shall be  construed  to  affect,
18    interpret,  or  in  any way address any of the following: (i)
19    that portion of the First  Amendment  of  the  United  States
20    Constitution prohibiting laws respecting the establishment of
21    religion, (ii) the second sentence of Article I, Section 3 of
22    the  Illinois  Constitution, or (iii) Article X, Section 3 of
23    the Illinois  Constitution.    Granting  government  funding,
24    benefits,  or exemptions, to the extent permissible under the
25    3 constitutional provisions described in items (i), (ii), and
26    (iii) of this subsection, does not constitute a violation  of
27    this  Act.  In this subsection, "granting", used with respect
28    to government funding,  benefits,  or  exemptions,  does  not
29    include  the  denial  of  government  funding,  benefits,  or
30    exemptions.
31        (d)  The corporate authorities of a municipality or other
32    unit  of  local  government  may enact ordinances, standards,
33    rules, or regulations  that  protect  the  free  exercise  of
                            -4-                LRB9011515DJcd
 1    religion in a manner or to an extent equal to or greater than
 2    the  protection  provided  in  this  Act.   If  an ordinance,
 3    standard, rule, or regulation enacted under the authority  of
 4    this  Section  or  under  the  authority  of  a unit of local
 5    government's home rule powers prohibits, restricts,  narrows,
 6    or  burdens  a  person's  exercise of religion or permits the
 7    prohibition,  restriction,  narrowing,  or  burdening  of   a
 8    person's  exercise  of  religion,  that  ordinance, standard,
 9    rule, or regulation is void  and  unenforceable  as  to  that
10    person  if  it  (i)  is  not  in  furtherance of a compelling
11    governmental interest and (ii) is not the  least  restrictive
12    means   of   furthering  that  governmental  interest.   This
13    subsection is a limitation under subsection (i) of Section  6
14    of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution on the concurrent
15    exercise by home rule units of powers and functions exercised
16    by the State.

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