House Committee Advances Campus Religious Protection Bill

On Wednesday, the House Higher Education Committee advanced a bill meant to protect the rights of religious student groups at public universities. HB 136, sponsored by Rep. Brad Hudson (R – Cape Fair), would prevent universities from denying a religious student group the same benefits as other student groups on campus. Specifically, the bill prohibits discrimination against a belief-based student association based on its requirement that leaders of the association adhere to its sincerely held beliefs, sincere practice requirements, or standards of conduct. The bill was approved by the committee on a 7-2 vote, and will now go to the entire House for debate. The MCC provided testimony in support of this legislation.