Arizona governor asked to nix bill angering gays
(AP, February 21, 2014)
Phoenix — Four years after igniting a national uproar over immigration, the
Arizona Legislature has jumped into the battle over gay rights with a
piece of legislation that had opponents on Friday predicting business boycotts
against the state.
The legislation allows business owners with strongly held religious beliefs
to refuse service to gays, and all eyes are on Republican Gov. Jan Brewer
as she decides whether to sign the bill. A decision is likely next week.
The conservative governor is already feeling pressure from the business
community to veto the bill passed late Thursday. A prominent Phoenix group
believes it would be another black eye for the state that saw a national
backlash over its 2010 immigration crackdown law, SB1070. Opponents also
pointed
out that the legislation would serve as a major distraction as Arizona
prepares to host the Super Bowl next year.
But Brewer also will be heavily pressured to sign the bill by social
conservatives who backed it as a religious-rights bill.
Brewer, who is deeply religious but also pro-business, is caught somewhere
in the middle. She hasn't taken a public position on this bill.
Social conservatives and libertarian-minded members of the GOP believe the
legislation protects the First Amendment rights of business owners who are
expressing their religious beliefs.
The new legislation was passed over the shrill objections of Democrats who
said it was clearly designed to allow discrimination against gays. All but
three Republicans in the Legislature voted in favor of the bill.
Greater Phoenix Economic Council President and CEO Barry Broome urged the
governor to veto the bill and said four companies have already put their
plans to open facilities in Arizona on hold until they see if the bill becomes
law. The impact could mean the potential loss of "thousands of jobs,"
Broome said.
In terms of wooing businesses, Broome said the bill is far more damaging
than SB1070 was.
"This is coming out of left field ... from a bunch of demagogues who don't
care about Arizona's future," Broome said. "I think the political
consequences are gonna be greater than people might think."
Republicans defended the proposal during two days of debate in the House
and Senate, saying the bill is only a "modest update" of the state's existing
religious freedom law, which mirrors existing federal legislation. They
frequently cited the case of a New Mexico photographer who was sued after
refusing to take wedding pictures of a gay couple and said Arizona needs a law
to protect people in the state from heavy-handed actions by courts.
"The world's on its ear," said Rep. John Allen, R-Scottsdale, who supported
the bill. "It's alien to me that a business owner can't reflect his faith
in his business."
The bill allows any business, church or person to cite the law as a defense
in any action brought by the government or an individual claiming
discrimination. It also allows the business or person to seek an injunction
once
they show their actions are based on a sincere religious belief and the claim
places a burden on the exercise of their religion.
Arizona is one of several states with religious freedom laws on the books,
and the proposal in question would expand the act in ways that supporters
say do not amount to radical revisions.
The ultimate fate of the bill will be clear sometime next week. Brewer will
have five days after her office receives the bill to act, and it likely
won't reach her desk until Monday.
She did veto similar legislation last year, but that came during a
bill-signing moratorium she put in place while she battled to get recalcitrant
conservatives in the Legislature to pass a Medicaid expansion. Still, the veto
might be a hint that she won't go along again. And she's knocked down other
controversial bills, including a 2011 bill that would have required
President Barack Obama and other presidential candidates to prove their U.S.
citizenship before their names could appear on the state's ballot.
Rep. Demion Clinco, a Tucson Democrat who is openly gay, called the bill
"toxic" and said it will validate attacks on gays and lesbians.
"It actually creates some sort of credibility to be able to tell someone
'I'm sorry, I can't serve you in my restaurant or my place of business or
provide you services because you're different or because of your sexuality,'"
Clinco said.
Josh Kredit, an attorney for the Center of Arizona Policy which helped
draft the legislation, said it wouldn't add any new substantive legal rights
for business owners.
"We are clarifying the protection we thought existed. We're not saying you
have carte blanche to do whatever you want," Kredit said.
Religious groups were split. Kredit's group is evangelical Christian, and
the Arizona Catholic Conference backs the bill. The Episcopal Diocese of
Arizona opposes it.
About 250 protesters gathered outside the state capitol Friday, holding
signs with messages such as "This is Ridiculous" and "What About Love Thy
Neighbor?" Another protest was planned in Tucson, where a march to Brewer's
southern Arizona office was planned.
Meanwhile, Republican Secretary of State Ken Bennett issued a statement
calling the bill "an unnecessary measure to protect a God-given right already
assured by the Constitution."
After hearing that the legislation was approved, Rocco DiGrazia, owner of
Rocco's Little Chicago Pizzeria in Tucson, put up a sign on a window
Thursday night that reads "We reserve the right to refuse service to Arizona
legislators."
DiGrazia calls the bill's approval "appalling."
DiGrazia, who grew up Catholic but doesn't follow any religion now, said he
cares more about dishing out pizza to customers — gay or straight. He
isn't sure if he'll follow what's on his sign.
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