Issue Position: HB 2453

Issue Position

HB 2453 creates no right for anyone to deny general services, or otherwise discriminate against, anyone based upon sexual orientation or identity.

Rather, the bill is tightly drafted to advance a simple principle that should unite all of us as Kansans, that "The state should never force anyone to perform an action he or she believes to be wrong as a matter of sincerely held religious belief, unless it has a good reason, not merely to have the action performed, but to insist that the even those who find it wrong perform it."

The bill covers a narrow range of conduct such as:

Upholding the principle that a Church that rents out its sanctuary for weddings should not be punished by the state if it declines to host weddings that violate the Church's beliefs;
Upholding the principle that a small business owner, like a wedding photographer, should not be punished by the state if she declines to attend and provide services at a wedding that is contrary to her beliefs;
Upholding the principle that an entity like Catholic Charities should not be restricted by the state from helping families with adoption services simply because of the Catholic Church's beliefs regarding marriage.
The bill grants only those legal rights already provided in Title VII of the federal civil right act with respect to an employer's duty to accommodate the religious beliefs of its employees. In fact, the section of the bill dealing with such accommodations provides, for the first time in Kansas law, a clear obligation for those employers covered by the act to ensure that the requested service is in fact provided. This is just one example of the many ways in which the bill is carefully structured to respect the rights of Kansans on both sides of the marriage debate.

While marriage is an issue about which thoughtful and sincere people can disagree, we should all be able to agree that the government should not punish anyone for the views they hold on this sensitive issue -- HB 2453 is limited to advancing this important goal, nothing more.

Source