Take Two: Religious Viewpoints Antidiscrimination Act – OK HB 1001 – by Sally Kern and Mike Reynolds

During the last term, OK HB 2633, the Religious Viewpoints Antidiscrimination Act* by Sen. James Williamson (R-Tulsa) and Rep. Sally Kern (R-OKC) was passed overwhelmingly in the Oklahoma House and Senate, but vetoed by OK Gov. Brad Henry, who wrote that it was “vaguely written and may trigger a number of unintended consequences that actually impede rather than enhance such expression.”

This year, a similar version of the bill, modeled after existing law in Texas, has been refiled in the OK House by Rep, Sally Kern and Rep. Mike Reynolds (R-OKC), as House Bill 1001, The Religious Viewpoints Antidiscrimination Act.

Rep. Sally Kern explains that HB 1001:

“…[C]odifies a series of U.S. Supreme Court decisions concerning religious expression in public schools and will serve as a guide to public school administrators on what kind of religious expression is permitted in the classroom. The bill will protect school districts from costly litigation in the event a suit is filed claiming discrimination against a student’s freedom of religious expression. The bill does not exempt students from learning the required classroom instruction. If passed, the bill would put already existing U.S. Supreme Court decisions into Oklahoma statutes. In the event of a law suit, school district lawyers would not have to research the volumes of constitutional law but simply go to Oklahoma statutes to discover what the law says on this topic. Bottom line: this bill would save school districts time and money in the event of a law suit.”

Last year, the legislature was unable to get the votes to override the governor’s veto, but this year, there are more Republicans in office, so there could be a very different result.

*To download and view OK HB 2633 from the last session, copy and paste the following into your browser: webserver1.lsb.state.ok.us/2007-08bills/hb/hb2633_hflr.rtf

For more information on Texas’ current Religious Viewpoint Anti-Discrimination Law, see:

• About the New Act: Religious Students’ Rights Clarified
• Summary of the State of the Law Regarding Faith-Based Viewpoints Expressed by Student Speakers in Public Schools
• Copy of TX HB 3678, An Act relating to voluntary student expression of religious viewpoints in public schools.