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July 28, 2000 TO: JCPA Member Agencies FROM: Guila Franklin Siegel, Associate Director, Domestic Concerns,
(202/293-1649, x204) gfsiegel@thejcpa.org RE: The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act In a truly remarkable show of what can be done quickly in Washington
when all the interested parties work together, last night both houses
of Congress passed the "Religious Land Use and Institutionalized
Persons Act" (RLUIPA). This legislation is a narrower version of
the Religious Liberty Protection Act (RLPA), which failed last year.
RLUIPA focuses upon two areas in which state or local regulations often
interfere with religious liberty --- land use regulation and institutionalized
persons. It will enable synagogues and other houses of worship, often
harassed under the pretext of zoning laws, to get a fairer hearing when
they seek to construct or relocate a facility for religious use. It
will also allow prisoners and other institutionalized persons to have
access to religious articles and services. The legislation was introduced earlier this month in the U.S. Senate
by Senators Hatch (R-UT), Kennedy (D-MA), Bennett (R-UT), Lieberman
(D-CT), Hutchinson (R-AR) and Schumer (D-NY) as S.2869, and in the House
by Representatives Canady (FL) and Nadler (NY). Both bills passed as
non-controversial unanimous consent voice votes.
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