House removes religious discrimination provision

The Indiana House of Representatives almost considered a provision that would allow certain state contractors to discriminate based on religion in their hiring practices earlier this week.

An amendment tacked onto an unrelated tax bill said contracts between the state and religious groups could be written without requirements to consider all applicants and employees equally in hiring and conditions of employment, regardless of religion.

This would have applied to “any school, educational, or charitable religious institution owned or conducted by or affiliated with a church or religious institution,” according to the Indiana Code.

The language was inserted into Senate Bill 367 in the House Ways and Means
Committee by Rep. Eric Turner, R-Cicero, who also authored the amendment banning same-sex marriage in Indiana, House Joint Resolution 3.

He said such contracts are currently allowed by federal law.

“What we were trying to do in working with the attorney general’s office is mirror
federal law to allow these faith-based institutions to continue these contracts with the state,” Turner said Tuesday, according to the Indianapolis Star. “I never intended this amendment to be anything more than that.”

He could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Though the Ways and Means Committee passed the amended bill and sent it on to the full House, Speaker Bryan Bosma, R-Indianapolis, sent it back to the committee for further debate. In a debate Tuesday, the committee removed the amendment, returning the bill to its original form.

SB 367 sets sunset dates on a variety of state tax credit programs, which bill authors hope will force the General Assembly to review them in 2016 and 2017, make improvements and reauthorize them, Sen. Brandt Hershman, R-Wheatfield, said last
week.

The bill, without the religious discrimination amendment, should be heard and voted on by the full House in the coming weeks. The General Assembly has until March 14 to consider all legislation before session ends.

Michael Auslen