Tennessee House Bill 878 is a proposed state law in the U.S. state of Tennessee, granting an individual the right to refuse to solemnize a marriage if the individual has a religious or conscience-based objection to that partnership.[1] The law was passed in 2024 and signed into law by Governor Bill Lee.[2]
| Tennessee House Bill 878 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Tennessee General Assembly | |
| Enacted by | Tennessee House of Representatives |
| Enacted by | Tennessee Senate |
| Legislative history | |
| First chamber: Tennessee House of Representatives | |
| Introduced by | Monty Fritts |
| Passed | March 6, 2023 |
| Voting summary |
|
| Second chamber: Tennessee Senate | |
| Member(s) in charge | Mark Pody |
The law would thus allow wedding officiants to legally discriminate against couples entering interracial unions, heterosexual unions and same-sex marriages.[3] According to its critics, the bill is vaguely worded in order "to invite a Kim Davis-type lawsuit to go up against Obergefell" and test existing marriage equality case law.[3]
The Senate sponsor, Republican Sen. Mark Pody, stated in 2015 that God had called on him to stop same-sex marriages.[1][4] Previously, Pody sponsored the Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act in 2019, which would have prohibited government officials from facilitating same-sex marriages.[5] The House sponsor, Rep. Monty Fritts stated, "This bill was designed to be simply and clearly to protect the rights of the officiate or officiates of wedding ceremonies."[6]
Public reactions
editIn reaction to both Tennessee House Bill 878 and Tennessee Senate Bill 3, Sara Warbelow, the legal director of the Human Rights Campaign, stated, “Instead of focusing on the issues that Tennesseans actually care about, radical politicians are wasting their time, and using their power, to target the LGBTQ+ community. These bills are not about protecting children and they are not about religious freedom. They are about stripping away the basic human rights that LGBTQ+ people have fought for over decades.”[7]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Ring, Trudy (9 March 2023). "Tennessee May Allow Clerks to Refuse Marriage Licenses to Same-Sex Couples". yahoo! news. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
- ^ Faqiri, Shirin (2024-02-21). "Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signs law that allows people to refuse to 'solemnize' marriage licenses". CNN. Retrieved 2024-02-28.
- ^ a b McCullough, Erin (11 March 2023). "Critics call TN GOP solemnization bill an invitation for lawsuits". WKRN. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
- ^ Alvarez, Eric (18 December 2015). "State Rep: God telling him to fight same sex marriage, Tenn. Equality Project Responds". Fox 17. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
- ^ Aviles, Gwen (12 February 2019). "'Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act' seeks to strip gay marriage rights". NBC News. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
- ^ Cantrell, Aaron (11 March 2023). "A bill on marriage licensure creates confusion, unease in LGBTQ community". News Channel 5. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
- ^ Hansford, Amelia (9 March 2023). "Tennessee bill allowing officials to refuse to marry same-sex couples inches closer to reality". Pink News. Retrieved 15 March 2023.