State Religious Freedom Restoration Acts

The Religious Freedom Restoration Act is a federal law that was passed almost unanimously by the U.S. Congress in 1993 and signed into law by President Bill Clinton. The law mandates that the courts protect religious liberty by stating religious freedom can only be limited by the “least restrictive means of furthering a compelling government interest.” Originally, the federal law was intended to apply to federal, state, and local governments. In 1997, the U.S. Supreme Court in City of Boerne v. Flores held that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act only applies to the federal government but not states and other local municipalities. As a result, 19 states have passed their own RFRAs that apply to their individual state and local governments.

Effects of RFRAs on state court cases

Mandates courts use the following when considering religious liberty cases:

1. Strict scrutiny
2. Religious liberty can only be limited for a compelling government interest
3. If religious liberty is to be limited, it must be done in the least restrictive manner possible

States with RFRAs

There are 19 states that have adopted a state version of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1997 that the federal law does not apply to state-level court cases.

• Alabama (state constitution amendment)
• Arizona
• Connecticut
• Florida
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• New Mexico
• Oklahoma
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Virginia