Texas Passes 'Save Chick-fil-A' Religious Liberty Bill – Should More States Follow?

Update - July 20, 2019:

• Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has signed the so-called "Save Chick-fil-A" bill into law.

“Today I signed the @ChickfilA law in Texas. And, had a great lunch,” Abbott wrote on Twitter. “No business should be discriminated against simply because its owners gave to a church or to the Salvation Army or to any other religious organization.”

• The legislation explicitly bans local governments from taking “any adverse action” against individuals or businesses based on their affiliations with, or contributions to, a religious organization. 
• The bill got its nickname after San Antonio blocked Chick-fil-A from the city’s airport because the fast-food chain makes contributions to anti-LGBTQ+ organizations.

"The Save Chick-fil-A law makes it clear in Texas: You don’t mess with Chick-fil-A, and you don’t mess with religious freedom,” Jonathan Saenz, president of the socially conservative Texas Values Action, said in a statement.

• "Senate Bill 1978 has one aim only: to undermine LGBTQ equality and promote anti-LGBTQ messages. This bill is nothing more than an anti-LGBTQ dog whistle,” Samantha Smoot, interim executive director of statewide LGBTQ group Equality Texas, said in a statement.

Countable's original story appears below.

What’s the story?

• After San Antonio, Texas, blocked Chick-fil-A from the city’s airport because the fast-food chain makes contributions to anti-LGBTQ+ organizations, the GOP-controlled House has passed the "Save Chick-fil-A" bill.
• The legislation, which passed in the Texas Senate last week, explicitly bans local governments from taking “any adverse action” against individuals or businesses based on their affiliations with, or contributions to, a religious organization. 

What are people saying?

Critics

• “It’s been cloaked in religious freedom, but the genesis, the nexus of this bill, is in hatred,” said state Rep. Celia Israel (D-Austin), according to the Texas Tribune.

"The bill does nothing but target the LGBT community," Sen. Borris Miles (D-Houston) told the Morning News. "It sends the wrong message that Texas discriminates, plain and simple."

Supporters

• "The bill as filed ensures religious beliefs are protected from discrimination. It's about the First Amendment and freedom of speech, freedom of religion — those uniquely American rights," said bill author Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola), per the Dallas Morning News.

“Look at the language in this bill,” said House sponsor Rep. Matt Krause (R-Fort Worth). “There is nothing discriminatory in the language. … There is nothing discriminatory in the intent.”

What do you think?

Should more states pass laws like the Save Chick-fil-A bill? Take action and tell your reps, then share your thoughts below.

—Josh Herman

(Photo Credit: iStock / jetcityimage)