State Sen. Greg Kirk defends religious freedom legislation

ATLANTA — The Georgia General Assembly has passed the controversial “Religious Liberty” bill, effectively tossing that political hot potato squarely in the lap of Gov. Nathan Deal.

Originally known as the Pastors Protection Act, over the past two years House Bill 757 morphed into the “Free Exercise Protection Act.” The bill states “religious officials shall not be required to perform marriage ceremonies, perform rites, or administer sacraments in violation of their legal right to free exercise of religion.”

Under terms of the bill, religious officials will not be required to perform same sex marriages if it conflicts with their beliefs. The bill would also protect faith-based groups from having to rent their facilities for events they deem objectionable.

Supporters of the bill says it confirms their religious values while opponents say it is discriminatory in nature and might be unconstitutional.

State Sen. Greg Kirk, R-Americus, who was a primary sponsor of the original bill, said Thursday “I am elated with the bill in its current form. I think it’s a good, fair bill. You haven’t heard much out of me this session because I was being patient and not as vocal as I wanted to be.

“I’ve gotten Facebook messages, emails and phone calls wanting me to be more reactive, but I chose to remain patient and that’s been the most difficult thing for me to do.”

The bill went through several back and forth trips between the House and Senate and was amended several times before finally approved by the House (104-65) and the Senate (37-18) on Wednesday. The original bill passed the house 161-0 on Feb. 11 before being sent to the senate.

That unanimity changed after multiple revisions in the Senate and House. All four members of the Dougherty County delegation voted against the final version of the bill.

“I strongly supported HB 757 when we passed it unanimously out of the House several days ago. However, our bill was significantly revised by the Senate and was unrecognizable from our original bill,” State Rep. Darrel Ealum, D-Albany, said. ” My desire was to protect our clergy and to reinforce the rights provided to them under our Constitution. The Senate extended the scope outside the clergy and that was unacceptable to me.”

State Rep. Gerald Greene, R-Cuthbert, agreed with Ealum.

“I voted against the final version of bill because I think it is discriminatory and unconstitutional,” Greene said. “We have bigger issues in this state to deal with like unemployment and medicaid. I’m a southern Baptist and I’m not working to hurt anyone and I’ve seen many people hurt by poor legislation. This is poor legislation.

“I’m waiting to see if the governor is going to sign it.”

Deal has also expressed concerns over the legislation, and some feel enacting it as law could hurt Georgia’s reputation as the self-proclaimed “No. 1 state to do business.”

“I think it’s a scare tactic used by the bill’s opponents,” Kirk said. “We have international businesses in this state who do business in countries that chop off the heads of homosexuals and they never say a word about that. I don’t think making this bill law will have any meaningful impact on businesses in the state.”

State Rep. Winfred Dukes, D-Albany, did not mince words when it can to his disdain for the bill.

“It’s discriminatory, plain and simple,” Dukes said. “It affects everyone and is a provision against the people. We agree with the intent of the law, but we can’t discriminate because of religious beliefs. Those of us who are believers don’t need the state to tell us what to do.”

State Sen. Freddie Powell Sims, D-Dawson, also voted against the bill but did not return a call seeking comment.

Deal has three options available. He can sign the bill, veto it or not sign it. Kirk said he had a meeting set up next week to discuss the bill with Deal.