Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed into law a bill that protects the religious convictions of people approached to solemnize or officiate a marriage.
“A person shall not be required to solemnize a marriage if the person has an objection to solemnizing the marriage based on the person’s conscience or religious beliefs,” reads the new law which took effect on Wednesday.
Tennessee law allows for religious ministers and chaplains to solemnize marriages, as well as notaries public, mayors, county clerks, county commissioners, some state legislators, and judges.
A number of liberal news outlets and LGBTQ activists have reported on the bill by focusing on whether the bill will allow Tennesseans to refuse to solemnize same-sex marriages. However, the law itself never mentions same-sex marriage, nor does it afford county clerks the ability to refuse a marriage license to a couple.
“[The new law] would be patently unconstitutional,” Legal Director for Lambda Legal Camilla Taylor said in a statement to CNN before the bill was signed. “Public officials don’t get to assume public office and then pick and choose which members of the public to serve.”
However, Tennessee is not the only state that allows government officials to refuse to solemnize a marriage based on religious convictions. North Carolina and Mississippi both have laws with similar language on the books, according to data from the Movement Advancement Project.
“Religious conscience rights are a bedrock of Tennessee values and the Constitution of the United States,” the Tennessee Faith and Freedom Coalition, an organization that advocates for public policy informed by faith and traditional values, commented to The Tennessee Star about the new law. “Governor Lee’s signature is yet another declaration that the state of Tennessee strongly supports religious liberty and conscience rights, which are sacred.”
“This bill is, indeed, a freedom bill, colleagues” said State Representative Monty Fritts (R-Kingston), a sponsor of the new law, about the legislation during a March 6, 2023, State House floor session. “This bill is designed simply and clearly to protect the rights of the officiants of wedding ceremonies.”
“We have seen in the past few years an attack on all our civil liberties and rights,” Fritts continued. “This bill is simply to document the fact that you can’t be forced to solemnize a marriage.”
State Senator Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) was the primary sponsor for the Senate’s companion bill.
The new law is not expected to affect the total number of marriages solemnized or issued marriage licenses in Tennessee in the future, according to a March 2023 fiscal note on the legislation by the General Assembly Fiscal Review Committee executive director.
Lee has not yet publicly commented on the bill.
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Matthew Giffin is a reporter for The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Matthew on X/Twitter.
