| 3.23.22

Putting Marriage into Religious Freedom (H.R. 3133)

Do you support or oppose this bill?

What is H.R. 3133?

(Updated November 21, 2017)

This bill would prevent the federal government from acting against those who hold the religious beliefs that:

marriage is between a man and a woman
sexual relations are only appropriate within that union.

In this context, "acting against" means the federal government would be prohibited from using the tax code to discriminate against those who exercise their religious beliefs regarding marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

H.R. 3133 would prohibit the government from using a group or individual's religious beliefs surrounding marriage to taking away:

Tax exemptions or deductions
Federal benefits
Federal grants, contracts, cooperative agreements, and loans
Federal licenses, certifications, and accreditation,
Federal employment, or similar positions

Argument in favor

Freely exercising your religion is a fundamental American right, and the government cannot use the tax code to penalize people for their beliefs.

Argument opposed

This bill promotes inequality and homophobia by allowing people and businesses a legal way to discriminate against same-sex couples.

Impact

Federal agencies that enforce the tax code, people with religious beliefs about marriage between men and women, the LGBTQ community and allies, religious institutions (including universities), non-profits, and corporations.

Cost of H.R. 3133

A CBO cost estimate is not available at this time.

Additional Info

In Depth:

This bill was introduced in response to the 2013 scandal revealing that the IRS was heavily scrutinizing certain groups applying for tax exemptions based on their political views. H.R. 3133 aims to protect religious organizations from facing similar scrutiny because of their beliefs.

Following the contentious passage of Proposition 8 in California, the City of San Francisco tried to collect $20 million in transfer taxes from the Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco after it reorganized its assets. While the City lost its case in court, there were suggestions that the attempt at taxing the Archdiocese was politically motivated because of the church's support for Proposition 8. Supporters of this bill point to this case as an example of the kind of discrimination H.R. 3133 seeks to prevent on the federal level.

Opponents of the bill have argued that it would enable discrimination against same-sex couples, the LGBTQ community, and people who engage in pre-marital sex. By allowing organizations that view those lifestyles as immoral to keep their tax-exempt status, critics of the bill contend that the government would be promoting inequality and ignoring the inappropriate use of tax-exempt status.

President Obama just signed an executive order to protect LGBTQ employees from discrimination by their bosses. Still, detractors argue that this bill would embolden business owners to hide behind their claims to "religious freedom" and refuse service to same-sex couples or deny benefits to their LGBTQ employees. Or, that federal workers with religious beliefs against same-sex marriage would feel comfortable refusing to work on cases involving same-sex couples. Even with 21 states putting protections in place against sexual orientation discrimination, there have been countless allegations of discrimination against gay couples by business owners who cited religious beliefs as their reason for refusing service.