LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Lawmakers in Arkansas and Indiana passed legislation Thursday that they hoped would quiet the national uproar over new religious objections laws that opponents say offer a legal defense for anti-gay discrimination.
The Arkansas House voted 76-17 to adopt a revised bill after Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson asked for changes. Hutchinson signed it moments after the vote, saying the new version recognizes that “we have a diverse workforce and a diverse culture.”
A parallel process played out at the Indiana Capitol as the House and Senate passed changes to a law signed last week by Republican Gov. Mike Pence, who approved the revisions.
“Over the past week, this law has become a subject of great misunderstanding and controversy across our state and nation,” Pence said in a statement. “However we got here, we are where we are, and it is important that our state take action to address the concerns that have been raised and move forward.”
The new legislation marks the first time sexual orientation and gender identity have been mentioned in Indiana law.
The Arkansas measure is similar to a bill sent to the governor this week. Hutchinson said he wanted it revised to more closely mirror a 1993 federal law.
The Indiana amendment prohibits service providers from using the law as a legal defense for refusing to provide goods, services, facilities or accommodations. It also bars discrimination based on race, color, religion, ancestry, age, national origin, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or U.S. military service.
The measure exempts churches and affiliated schools, along with nonprofit religious organizations.
Business leaders, many of whom had opposed the law or canceled travel to the state because of it, called the amendment a good first step but said more work needs to be done. Gay-rights groups noted that Indiana’s civil-rights law still does not include LGBT people as a protected class.
Former Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson, a senior vice president at drugmaker Eli Lilly, praised the changes but said the state’s image must be mended.
“The healing needs to begin right now,” he said.
Democratic leaders said the amendment did not go far enough and repeated their calls to repeal the law.
“I want to hear somebody say we made a grave mistake and we caused the state tremendous embarrassment that will take months, if not years, to repair,” said House Minority Leader Scott Pelath.
The lawmaker behind the original Arkansas proposal supported the changes, saying he thought the law would still protect religious beliefs.
“We’re going to allow a person to believe what they want to believe without the state coming in and burdening that unless they’ve got a good reason to do so,” said Republican Rep. Bob Ballinger to the House Judiciary Committee.
Like Pence, Hutchinson faced pressure from the state’s largest employers, including retail giant Walmart, which
applauded the compromise.
“We hope today’s action marks a significant step toward achieving a greater understanding of the need to protect the rights of all Arkansans,” the company said in a statement.
The revised Arkansas measure addresses actions only by the government, not by businesses or individuals. Supporters said that would prevent businesses from using it to deny services to individuals. Opponents said they think the measure still needs explicit anti-discrimination language.
The original bill “gave us a black eye. This bill ices it,” said Rita Sklar, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas. “We still need some Tylenol.”
