‘Religious liberty’ bill takes a sharp rightward turn, convention industry says $15 million in business at risk

When the panel first convened, committee Chairman Wendell Willard, R-Sandy Springs, passed out a new version of Senate Bill 129 that would have greatly weakened its impact.

Then, over objections from Democrats, the subcommittee spent the next nearly three hours strengthening it again and beating back an effort to ensure it would not legalize discrimination.

As the subcommittee voted down amendment after amendment to add protections for gay Georgians, it became clear that the concerns of the bill's supporters would not come to pass. For days, vocal advocates of the bill hammered House Republicans, accusing them of working to kill the bill and imploring them to act decisively.

Specifically, state Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver, D-Decatur, introduced an amendment stating that the legislation couldn't be used to justify child abuse or violation of federal, state or local anti-discrimination laws already on the books. State Rep. Tom Weldon, R-Ringold, modified that amendment to include only child abuse, and the measure passed.

State Rep. Stacey Evans, R-Smryna, proposed an amendment to change references of "persons" to "individuals," which would have eliminated corporations from the protection of S.B. 129. State Rep. Barry Fleming, R-Harlem, noted that such a move would negate the "closely held corporation" protection granted last year by the U.S. Supreme Court in the Hobby Lobby case. The amendment was rejected.

The committee also rejected an attempt to incorporate into the legislation a bill proposed by state Rep. Karla Drenner, D-Atlanta, and Willard, which would have barred discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation within state government.

One change that held was requested by the Georgia and Metro Atlanta chambers. S.B. 129 addressed actions by government or entities acting "under the color of law" a phrase that business interests thought offer religious liberty protections to employees. The clause was removed.

If approved by the full committee, S.B. 129 could come to a House floor vote on Friday. And if approved, the Senate could simply accept the changes, given approval from state Sen. Josh McKoon, R-Columbus. From the AJC article:

McKoon said he was "pleased with what the subcommittee did (Wednesday). I feel like they definitely put their stamp on this bill but it retains the strict scrutiny test, which is the heart of the whole thing."

Jeff Graham, executive director of the LGBT-rights group Georgia Equality, declared himself stunned, given testimony earlier in the week that had recommended anti-discrimination language:

"It becomes very apparent that the sole intent of this legislation is to provide a vehicle that would allow discrimination and withhold services from the gay and transgender community here in Georgia."

Graham singled out state Rep. Beth Beskin, R-Atlanta, a freshman representing the most liberal Republican district in the state, for special attention.

"I find Beth Beskin's support of this legislation and her continued votes against eliminating discrimination to be especially troubling," Graham said. He said Beskin's votes help undermine anti-gay discrimination ordinances passed by the city of Atlanta.

Georgia's corporate giants have repeatedly expressed opposition to the legislation, but the Georgia and Metro Atlanta chambers have been subdued in their objections. As we said above, that may be about to change.

"This is no longer about the written word contained in the bill. This is about perception and PR. And the PR battle surrounding this issue is lost," said one business contact closely watching the negotiations. "All you have to do is look to Indiana for the fall out."