The 2014 Kansas legislative session saw its busiest and undoubtedly most controversial week so far. While all committees were packed with hearings on a variety of issues, ranging from taxation to school finance and everything in-between, it was the House debating and passing 72-49 HB 2453, also known as the "Religious Freedom Bill", that provided the most debate.
The bill aims to prevent same-sex couples from suing vendors for not providing services to them or from suing government employees who assert "sincerely held religious beliefs" which prevent them from providing services to them. The measure also prohibits management penalties for government employees who won't serve same-sex couples.
Debate on the bill was emotional and fiery. House Members, many of whom have only one year's worth of public service under their belts, found that the floor debate, while 90 minutes long and contentious, failed to compare to the heat being presented by the general public including business interests. The public response was swift, strong and loud. By the end of the week, even Members that voted for the measure were privately expressing this distaste for the position they have now found themselves.
In fact, it now appears that after communicating with stakeholders and business concerns, the Senate has little interest in wading into the fire. Senate President Susan Wagle, Vice President Jeff King and Majority Leader Terry Bruce held a press conference Friday morning with President Wagle saying, "After an initial review, I've grown concerned about the practical impact of the bill. A strong majority of my members support laws that define traditional marriage, protect religious institutions, and protect individuals from being forced to violate their personal moral values. However, my members also don't condone discrimination. If we cannot find ample common ground to ease legitimate concerns, I believe a majority of my caucus will not support the bill."
The political drama and implications surrounding the bill are far and wide. First, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback cannot be excited to see a bill like this arrive on his desk in an election year. It is highly likely that of the "stakeholders" Senate leaders have heard from, Sam Brownback is one. The House is also up for election in November and due to redistricting, many of the House Freshmen were elected facing no opposition at the ballot box. They are not battle tested, have very little campaign experience, and several have limited campaign war chests. Voting for this legislation will probably inspire challengers, and it may not be the type of publicity those Freshman are seeking.