Fix for 'religious freedom' law approved by Indiana Legislature, Pence

However, the nondiscrimination provisions in Senate Enrolled Act 50 do not apply in all circumstances, allowing most businesses, employers and housing providers to still refuse to serve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Hoosiers so long as they don't claim to be motivated by religion.

The Republican governor thanked the Republican-controlled Legislature for acting quickly on his request to fix Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act in the wake of boycotts and business cancellations following enactment of the controversial law one week prior.

"There will be some who think this legislation goes too far and some who think it does not go far enough, but as governor I must always put the interest of our state first and ask myself every day, 'What is best for Indiana?'" Pence said. "I believe resolving this controversy and making clear that every person feels welcome and respected in our state is best for Indiana."

Earlier in the day, House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, and Senate President David Long (R-Fort Wayne), were backed by some two dozen Hoosier business leaders as they announced the RFRA revisions they hope will quiet global condemnation of the law and state.

Bosma and Long continued to insist there is nothing wrong with the law, only the perception that Indiana is unwelcoming -- an awkward reputation to have as Indianapolis prepares to host the NCAA Final Four men's basketball tournament this weekend.

"Honestly, the language wasn't needed to clarify the statute legally. It is needed to clarify the perception of it," Bosma said. "The message is clear today ... Indiana is open for business and welcomes everyone."

The RFRA fix passed the House 66-30, and the Senate, 34-16. All Northwest Indiana Republicans voted in favor of the revision, just as they all voted for RFRA. Every region Democrat voted no on both proposals.

The final votes followed a full day of parliamentary maneuvering that saw Democrats, including state Rep. Linda Lawson, D-Hammond, removed from the House-Senate conference committee tasked with devising compromise legislative language.

They were replaced by Long and Bosma, who joined state Rep. David Frizzell, R-Indianapolis, and state Sen. Mike Young, R-Indianapolis, in approving the conference committee report and advancing it for chamber votes.

Lawson said she could not support the clarification proposal, because it was a confusing mess that will not change the perception that Indiana does not discriminate. She also believes there was a better way.

"Just get rid of it. Repeal it. There won't be a reason for anyone to have a concern about it," Lawson said. "Everybody will have a big lovefest because the bill does not exist anymore. Let's repeal it, start over and do something that's simple that everyone can understand."

In addition to denying a vote on repeal, Bosma and Long also rejected the idea that if Indiana does not want to be seen as discriminating against homosexuals it should add them as a protected class to the state's civil rights laws.

They said that would be "a huge policy change" and cannot be accomplished before the Legislature adjourns for the year April 29, even though the RFRA fix was enacted in just one week.

"The discussion about special class protections for the LGBT community is going to happen," Long said, while refusing to promise a Senate vote on the issue next year. Bosma also declined to guarantee a House vote.

House Democratic Leader Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, said the RFRA fix only is "window dressing" without statewide civil rights protections for gays and lesbians, and Indiana will continue to be perceived as unwelcoming.

"Even despite this disaster, we've done it the exact same way things always happen around here," Pelath said. "The people who made the problem in the first place got behind closed doors with some quaking-in-their-boots business leaders and hammered out something in private.

"Well it's not OK. (Hoosiers) are angry, they're embarrassed. They have been drug through a national conflagration. Let's get it right," Pelath said.

Some leaders of Indiana religious groups that supported RFRA, including Eric Miller of Advance America, urged representatives and senators to reject any changes to the law because they believe it does not permit discrimination and the revisions deny necessary legal protections to Indiana believers.

"What Indiana did in passing Senate Bill 101 was catch up with the majority of the rest of the nation and with the federal government," Miller said. "RFRA is not a discriminatory act, it is a protection for religious freedom."

Most opponents of the law, including ACLU of Indiana Executive Director Jane Henegar, seemed content to accept the clarifying legislation as a positive first step.

"Thousands of Hoosiers and millions of Americans spoke loudly and clearly that discrimination cannot be tolerated in any form, and that outcry has made all the difference," Henegar said. "Today, the harm has been lessened, but we have not yet reached the day when LGBT Hoosiers can be assured that they can live their lives free of discrimination."