Download Zipped Introduced WordPerfect SB0111S01.ZIP
[Status][Bill Documents][Fiscal Note][Bills Directory]

First Substitute S.B. 111

Senator D. Chris Buttars proposes the following substitute bill:


             1     
FREE EXERCISE OF RELIGION WITHOUT

             2     
GOVERNMENT INTERFERENCE

             3     
2007 GENERAL SESSION

             4     
STATE OF UTAH

             5     
Chief Sponsor: D. Chris Buttars

             6     
House Sponsor: Gregory H. Hughes

             7     
             8      LONG TITLE
             9      General Description:
             10          This bill enacts provisions creating a legal standard for the free exercise of religion.
             11      Highlighted Provisions:
             12          This bill:
             13          .    enacts Title 63, Chapter 90c, Free Exercise of Religion;
             14          .    waives governmental immunity for cases brought to enforce or obtain remedies for
             15      violation of this chapter;
             16          .    provides that the state entity may justify a law or action that substantially burdens a
             17      person's free exercise of religion only if the state entity demonstrates by a
             18      preponderance of the evidence that the law or action is substantially related to an
             19      important government interest;
             20          .    provides that the above standard applies even if the state law is generally applicable
             21      to all persons;
             22          .    authorizes a person whose right to free exercise of religion is burdened to recover
             23      injunctive relief, declaratory relief, and recovery of reasonable costs and attorney
             24      fees;
             25          .    permits a person to use a violation of this chapter as a defense in a judicial or


             26      administrative proceeding;
             27          .    provides for the application of the requirements of the chapter;
             28          .    provides that the chapter does not apply to a law where violation of the law
             29      constitutes a criminal offense;
             30          .    exempts inmates from the provisions of the chapter in certain circumstances; and
             31          .    provides a severability clause.
             32      Monies Appropriated in this Bill:
             33          None
             34      Other Special Clauses:
             35          None
             36      Utah Code Sections Affected:
             37      AMENDS:
             38          63-30d-301, as last amended by Chapters 2 and 99, Laws of Utah 2005
             39      ENACTS:
             40          63-90c-101, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             41          63-90c-102, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             42          63-90c-103, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             43          63-90c-104, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             44          63-90c-105, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             45          63-90c-106, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             46          63-90c-107, Utah Code Annotated 1953
             47     
             48      Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
             49          Section 1. Section 63-30d-301 is amended to read:
             50           63-30d-301. Waivers of immunity -- Exceptions.
             51          (1) (a) Immunity from suit of each governmental entity is waived as to any contractual
             52      obligation.
             53          (b) Actions arising out of contractual rights or obligations are not subject to the
             54      requirements of Sections 63-30d-401 , 63-30d-402 , 63-30d-403 , or 63-30d-601 .
             55          (c) The Division of Water Resources is not liable for failure to deliver water from a
             56      reservoir or associated facility authorized by Title 73, Chapter 26, Bear River Development


             57      Act, if the failure to deliver the contractual amount of water is due to drought, other natural
             58      condition, or safety condition that causes a deficiency in the amount of available water.
             59          (2) Immunity from suit of each governmental entity is waived:
             60          (a) as to any action brought to recover, obtain possession of, or quiet title to real or
             61      personal property;
             62          (b) as to any action brought to foreclose mortgages or other liens on real or personal
             63      property, to determine any adverse claim on real or personal property, or to obtain an
             64      adjudication about any mortgage or other lien that the governmental entity may have or claim
             65      on real or personal property;
             66          (c) as to any action based on the negligent destruction, damage, or loss of goods,
             67      merchandise, or other property while it is in the possession of any governmental entity or
             68      employee, if the property was seized for the purpose of forfeiture under any provision of state
             69      law;
             70          (d) subject to Subsection 63-30d-302 (1), as to any action brought under the authority of
             71      Article I, Section 22, of the Utah Constitution, for the recovery of compensation from the
             72      governmental entity when the governmental entity has taken or damaged private property for
             73      public uses without just compensation;
             74          (e) subject to Subsection 63-30d-302 (2), as to any action brought to recover [attorneys']
             75      attorney fees under Sections 63-2-405 and 63-2-802 ;
             76          (f) for actual damages under Title 67, Chapter 21, Utah Protection of Public Employees
             77      Act; [or]
             78          (g) as to any action brought to obtain relief from a land use regulation that imposes a
             79      substantial burden on the free exercise of religion under Title 63, Chapter 90b, Utah Religious
             80      Land Use Act[.]; or
             81          (h) as to an action brought to obtain relief from governmental action that substantially
             82      burdens the free exercise of religion under the requirements of Title 63, Chapter 90c, Free
             83      Exercise of Religion.
             84          (3) (a) Except as provided in Subsection (3)(b), immunity from suit of each
             85      governmental entity is waived as to any injury caused by:
             86          (i) a defective, unsafe, or dangerous condition of any highway, road, street, alley,
             87      crosswalk, sidewalk, culvert, tunnel, bridge, viaduct, or other structure located on them; or


             88          (ii) any defective or dangerous condition of a public building, structure, dam, reservoir,
             89      or other public improvement.
             90          (b) Immunity is not waived if the injury arises out of, in connection with, or results
             91      from:
             92          (i) a latent dangerous or latent defective condition of any highway, road, street, alley,
             93      crosswalk, sidewalk, culvert, tunnel, bridge, viaduct, or other structure located on them; or
             94          (ii) a latent dangerous or latent defective condition of any public building, structure,
             95      dam, reservoir, or other public improvement.
             96          (4) Immunity from suit of each governmental entity is waived as to any injury
             97      proximately caused by a negligent act or omission of an employee committed within the scope
             98      of employment.
             99          (5) Immunity is not waived under Subsections (3) and (4) if the injury arises out of, in
             100      connection with, or results from:
             101          (a) the exercise or performance, or the failure to exercise or perform, a discretionary
             102      function, whether or not the discretion is abused;
             103          (b) assault, battery, false imprisonment, false arrest, malicious prosecution, intentional
             104      trespass, abuse of process, libel, slander, deceit, interference with contract rights, infliction of
             105      mental anguish, or violation of civil rights;
             106          (c) the issuance, denial, suspension, or revocation of, or by the failure or refusal to
             107      issue, deny, suspend, or revoke, any permit, license, certificate, approval, order, or similar
             108      authorization;
             109          (d) a failure to make an inspection or by making an inadequate or negligent inspection;
             110          (e) the institution or prosecution of any judicial or administrative proceeding, even if
             111      malicious or without probable cause;
             112          (f) a misrepresentation by an employee whether or not it is negligent or intentional;
             113          (g) riots, unlawful assemblies, public demonstrations, mob violence, and civil
             114      disturbances;
             115          (h) the collection of and assessment of taxes;
             116          (i) the activities of the Utah National Guard;
             117          (j) the incarceration of any person in any state prison, county or city jail, or other place
             118      of legal confinement;


             119          (k) any natural condition on publicly owned or controlled lands, any condition existing
             120      in connection with an abandoned mine or mining operation, or any activity authorized by the
             121      School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration or the Division of Forestry, Fire, and State
             122      Lands;
             123          (l) research or implementation of cloud management or seeding for the clearing of fog;
             124          (m) the management of flood waters, earthquakes, or natural disasters;
             125          (n) the construction, repair, or operation of flood or storm systems;
             126          (o) the operation of an emergency vehicle, while being driven in accordance with the
             127      requirements of Section 41-6a-208 ;
             128          (p) the activities of:
             129          (i) providing emergency medical assistance;
             130          (ii) fighting fire;
             131          (iii) regulating, mitigating, or handling hazardous materials or hazardous wastes;
             132          (iv) emergency evacuations;
             133          (v) transporting or removing injured persons to a place where emergency medical
             134      assistance can be rendered or where the person can be transported by a licensed ambulance
             135      service; or
             136          (vi) intervening during dam emergencies;
             137          (q) the exercise or performance, or the failure to exercise or perform, any function
             138      pursuant to Title 73, Chapter 10, Board of Water Resources - Division of Water Resources; or
             139          (r) unauthorized access to government records, data, or electronic information systems
             140      by any person or entity.
             141          Section 2. Section 63-90c-101 is enacted to read:
             142     
CHAPTER 90c. FREE EXERCISE OF RELIGION

             143          63-90c-101. Title.
             144          This chapter is known as "Free Exercise of Religion."
             145          Section 3. Section 63-90c-102 is enacted to read:
             146          63-90c-102. Definitions.
             147          As used in this chapter:
             148          (1) "Exercise of religion" means the ability to act or refusal to act in a manner
             149      substantially motivated by a sincerely held religious belief, whether or not the exercise is


             150      compulsory or central to a larger system of religious belief.
             151          (2) "Government entity" means:
             152          (a) the state, a county, a municipality, a local school district, a higher education
             153      institution, a special district, or any other political subdivision of the state; or
             154          (b) any administrative subunit of an entity described in Subsection (2)(a).
             155          (3) "Person" means a natural person or individual, corporation, organization, or any
             156      other legal entity.
             157          (4) "Substantially burden" means to inhibit or curtail religiously motivated practices.
             158          Section 4. Section 63-90c-103 is enacted to read:
             159          63-90c-103. Free exercise of religion protected.
             160          (1) Free exercise of religion is a fundamental right that applies in this state under the
             161      Utah Constitution Article I, Section 4, even if laws, rules, ordinances, or other government
             162      actions are facially neutral.
             163          (2) Except as provided in Subsection (4), a government entity shall not substantially
             164      burden a person's exercise of religion even if the burden results from a law, rule, or ordinance
             165      of general applicability.
             166          (3) A government entity may substantially burden a person's exercise of religion only if
             167      it demonstrates, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the application of the burden to the
             168      person is substantially related to an important governmental interest.
             169          Section 5. Section 63-90c-104 is enacted to read:
             170          63-90c-104. Remedies.
             171          (1) A person who asserts a claim or defense against a government entity under this
             172      chapter may request:
             173          (a) declaratory relief;
             174          (b) temporary or permanent injunctive relief to prevent the threatened or continued
             175      violation; or
             176          (c) a combination of declaratory and injunctive relief.
             177          (2) A prevailing party in an action brought under this chapter may recover its court
             178      costs and reasonable attorney fees incurred.
             179          (3) A person may not bring an action under this chapter against an individual, other
             180      than an action against an individual acting in the individual's official capacity as an officer of a


             181      government entity.
             182          Section 6. Section 63-90c-105 is enacted to read:
             183          63-90c-105. Burden on exercise of religion as a defense.
             184          A person whose religious exercise is substantially burdened in violation of this chapter
             185      may assert that violation as a defense in a judicial or administrative proceeding without regard
             186      to whether the proceeding is brought in the name of the state or by any other person.
             187          Section 7. Section 63-90c-106 is enacted to read:
             188          63-90c-106. Application of chapter -- Application to criminal offenses --
             189      Constitutions and establishment clause unaffected -- Application to inmates.
             190          (1) (a) Subject to Subsections (1)(b) and (2), this chapter applies to all state laws and
             191      administrative rules, all local laws and ordinances, and the implementation of those laws, rules,
             192      and ordinances, whether statutory or otherwise, and whether enacted or adopted before, on, or
             193      after the effective date of this chapter.
             194          (b) This chapter does not apply to a law, rule, or ordinance where violation of the law,
             195      rule, or ordinance would constitute a criminal offense.
             196          (2) State laws that are enacted or adopted on or after the effective date of this chapter
             197      are subject to requirements of this chapter unless the law explicitly excludes application by
             198      reference to this chapter.
             199          (3) The protection of free exercise of religion afforded by this chapter is in addition to
             200      the protections provided under federal law and the constitutions of Utah and the United States.
             201          (4) This chapter shall not be construed to authorize a government entity to burden a
             202      person's free exercise of religion.
             203          (5) This chapter shall not be construed to affect, interpret, or in any way address that
             204      portion of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibiting laws respecting
             205      an establishment of religion.
             206          (6) (a) Except to the extent prohibited by federal law, the provisions of this chapter do
             207      not apply to an inmate, as defined in Section 64-13-1 , if the burden on the inmate's free
             208      expression of religion results from a law, rule, ordinance, policy, action, or omission that is
             209      reasonably related to a legitimate government interest, including:
             210          (i) the deterrence of crime;
             211          (ii) the prudent use of institutional resources;


             212          (iii) the health or safety of inmates, correctional staff, or the public;
             213          (iv) the rehabilitation of inmates; or
             214          (v) institutional security.
             215          (b) Except as prohibited by law, and consistent with the requirements of Subsection
             216      63-30d-202 (4), officers and employees of a correctional facility or county jail are exempt from
             217      liability in relation to any law, rule, ordinance, policy, action, or omission complained of under
             218      the provisions of this chapter.
             219          Section 8. Section 63-90c-107 is enacted to read:
             220          63-90c-107. Severability.
             221          If any word, phrase, sentence, or section of this chapter or its application to any person
             222      or circumstance is determined to be invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or
             223      applications of this chapter that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application,
             224      and to this end the provisions of this chapter are severable.


[Bill Documents][Bills Directory]