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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Lawmakers work to buffer religious-objections law

Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS – Gov. Mike Pence called off public appearances Monday and sports officials planned an “Indy Welcomes All” campaign ahead of this weekend’s NCAA Final Four in Indianapolis as lawmakers scrambled to quiet the firestorm over a new law that has much of the country portraying Indiana as a state of intolerance.

Republican legislative leaders said they are working on adding language to the religious-objections law to make it clear the measure does not allow discrimination against gays and lesbians. As signed by Pence last week, the measure prohibits state laws that “substantially burden” a person’s ability to follow his or her religious beliefs. The definition of “person” includes religious institutions, businesses and associations.

“What we had hoped for with the bill was a message of inclusion, inclusion of all religious beliefs,” Republican House Speaker Brian Bosma said.

The efforts fell flat with Democrats, who called for a repeal, and even some Republicans.

“They’re scrambling to put a good face on a bad issue. What puzzles me is how this effort came to the top of the legislative agenda when clearly the business community doesn’t support it,” said Bill Oesterle, an aide to Republican former Gov. Mitch Daniels and CEO of consumer reporting agency Angie’s List, which canceled expansion plans in Indianapolis because of the law.

Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard, a Republican, said the law threatens to undermine the city’s economic growth and reputation as a convention and tourism destination, and called for lawmakers to add protections for sexual orientation and gender identity to Indiana civil rights laws.

After a private meeting of House Republicans, Bosma said Monday that repealing the law isn’t “a realistic goal at this point.”

“I’m looking for a surgical solution, and I think the least intrusive surgery is to clarify that (the law) cannot be used to support the denial of goods, facilities or services to any member of the public,” he said.

Republican Senate President Pro Tem David Long stressed the new law is based on the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993.

But the Human Rights Campaign said it’s disingenuous to compare the two laws.

The campaign’s legal director, Sarah Warbelow, said the federal law was designed to ensure religious minorities were protected from laws passed by the federal government that might not have been intended to discriminate but had that effect.

The Indiana law, she said, allows individuals to invoke government action even when the government is not a party to a lawsuit. It also allows all businesses to assert religious beliefs regardless of whether they are actually religious organizations.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said he was imposing an administration-wide ban on state-funded travel to Indiana.