A religious freedom bill that says pastors cannot be forced to preside over same-sex marriages, and can hire or fire employees on the basis of their religious beliefs, was passed by the Georgia General Assembly on March 16. The bill, which is being criticized by opponents as too discriminatory, now moves to the state's Republican governor Nathan Deal.
The "Free Exercise Protection Act," which also known as the "Religious Liberty Bill," has to be signed by Deal to be made into a law. The governor had earlier said that he will not be signing any bill that could be interpreted as discriminatory.
The bill made it into the assembly after over two years of lobbying by Georgia Baptist Convention.
The religious liberty bill was amended several times on the floor, as opponents felt it was too restrictive.
The version that finally passed the assembly says that pastors cannot be compelled to participate in same-sex weddings, and churches, and affiliated organizations. Faith-based organizations cannot be required to hire or retain individuals who do not share their sincerely held religious beliefs, the bill also states.
The bill goes on to mandate that no faith organization can be made to rent, lease, or grant permission for property to groups whom they object to.
The Georgia assembly has made additions to the language used in Religious Freedom Restoration Act, to allow the government to step over individual religious liberty only in extraordinary circumstances and by least restrictive means.
America's largest LGBT-rights group, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), said that the bill will prove to be detrimental to non-discrimination ordinances, and with time the discrimination could extend to hospitals and job market.
"The decision by the legislature today was to make an egregious and discriminatory bill even worse," the HRC said in a statement.
"It's appalling that anti-equality extremists in the legislature are trying to ignore the will of the people of Georgia," it read.
Mike Griffin of Georgia Baptist Convention, who also lobbied for the bill, welcomed its passage in the assembly. According to him, the bill still fell short of mandating all the measures their organization wanted, but he said that it advanced protections in First Amendment Right to religious freedom.
Many large organizations such as Google, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, and Delta Airlines have expressed their opposition to the bill.
California tech firm Salesforce, which has made huge investments in Georgia, and other local business and LGBT groups are putting pressure on Deal to veto the bill.
