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Kansas Lawmaker Concerned About Consequences Of Campus Religious Freedom Bill

Stephen Koranda
/
KPR/File photo

A lawmaker in the Kansas House warns that a campus religious freedom bill could attract national attention like the type that has been aimed at Indiana recently. The Kansas bill would bar colleges from taking action against religious student groups that want to exclude people from their organization.

Republican Representative Stephanie Clayton urged her colleagues to vote against the bill in a House committee.

“If we pass this, we might face national backlash. It could have an adverse effect on the Kansas economy,” says Clayton.

Some opponents say the bill allows groups to discriminate and the legislation isn’t needed.

Supporters say they want to protect religious student groups against future sanctions from colleges and universities.

Republican Representative Dick Jones says the legislation is something they should pass.

“I would really hate to think that we wouldn’t pass a bill based on what might happen, that somebody might sue us, that there might be a revolution in the country against Kansas,” says Jones.

The full House will now consider the bill. It has already passed the Kansas Senate.

Stephen Koranda is the managing editor of the Kansas News Service, based at KCUR. He has nearly 20 years of experience in public media as a reporter and editor.