Gov. Kim Reynolds signs 'religious freedom' law at private event hosted by Christian group

Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed a "religious freedom restoration act" that will allow Iowans to go to court if they believe the government has infringed on their exercise of religion.

Democrats and business groups have opposed the law, saying it will allow people to "weaponize" their religious beliefs to justify discrimination against LGBTQ Iowans and others by denying them medical care, housing or other services.

Reynolds signed the law, Senate File 2095, Tuesday evening at a private dinner hosted by The Family Leader, a conservative Christian organization. The group's president and CEO, Bob Vander Plaats, shared photos on social media showing Reynolds signing the legislation surrounded by Republican lawmakers.

"Thirty years ago, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act passed almost unanimously at the federal level," Reynolds said in a statement. "Since then, religious rights have increasingly come under attack. Today, Iowa enacts a law to protect these unalienable rights — just as twenty-six other states have done — upholding the ideals that are the very foundation of our country."

More: Iowa House passes 'religious freedom' bill. Democrats say it allows discrimination

Republicans have worked to pass a religious freedom law since taking full control of the Iowa House, Senate and governor's office in 2016, but prior versions of the legislation have failed to pass amid opposition from business groups.

Courtney Reyes, executive director of the LGBTQ rights group One Iowa Action, said in a statement that the law will allow broad religious exemptions to otherwise generally applicable laws.

"There’s no denying it: this bill is aimed at discriminating against LGBTQ+ Iowans, single parents, people needing reproductive health care services and many more," she said in a statement.

What does Iowa's religious freedom restoration act do?

The law says that state and local governments shall not "substantially burden" someone's exercise of religion unless it is in furtherance of a compelling government interest and the least restrictive means of pursuing that interest.

A person, corporation, church, foundation or other entity whose exercise of religion has been burdened can go to court to seek damages or other means of redressing the harm against them.

The law defines exercise of religion as action "substantially motivated by one's sincerely held religious belief, whether or not the exercise is compulsory or central to a larger system of religious belief."

The law took effect immediately upon being signed by the governor.

The Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative advocacy group that has defended Iowa's six-week abortion ban in court and helped write a law banning transgender youth from receiving gender-affirming medical care, released a statement in support of the law.

"This law provides a sensible balancing test for courts to use when reviewing government policies that infringe upon the religious freedom rights of Iowans," the group's legal counsel, Greg Chafuen, said in a statement. "The law doesn’t determine who will win every disagreement, but it does ensure that every Iowan — regardless of their religious creed or political power — receives a fair hearing when government action forces a person to violate his or her religious beliefs."

The federal government passed a "Religious Freedom Restoration Act" in 1993, and about two dozen states have their own version.

Why business groups, Democrats think the religious freedom law could hurt workforce, allow discrimination

Business groups have opposed similar legislation in Iowa for years, and several business groups and chambers of commerce urged lawmakers not to pass this year's bill. Lobbyists registered against the bill include the Krause Group, the Technology Association of Iowa, Principal Financial Group and the Iowa Chamber Alliance.

During debate in the Iowa Legislature, Democrats raised several examples of people in other states who have been denied medical services, including abortion, as well as examples of businesses denying services to LGBTQ Iowans.

They pointed to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 2014 that Hobby Lobby could cite a religious belief under the federal law to refuse to cover birth control for its employees' health insurance plans.

House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst, D-Windsor Heights, told reporters Feb. 29 ahead of the House vote on the legislation that it will have a negative impact on Iowa's ability to recruit young workers in the state, even if the impact isn't evident right away.

"Legalizing discrimination is going to make it harder to recruit young people and keep young people to stay," she said. "We might not see an immediate economic impact, but we’re going to be able to look back in five years and see that all of the nonsense we’ve passed has made it harder to keep young people here."

Sen. Janice Weiner, D-Iowa City, called the law unjust and discriminatory in a statement following its signing.

"Iowans don’t want legalized discrimination," Weiner said in the statement. "They don’t want someone to be able to refuse to rent to someone or serve someone based on religious or moral beliefs. What they want is justice and fairness and economic opportunity and personal freedom. The so-called RFRA law is an attack on all of those Iowa values — and we’ll be paying the price for a long time to come."

Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on Twitter at @sgrubermiller.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa Gov. Reynolds signs 'religious freedom' law at Christian event