Protect our civil rights laws

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A bill that allows any individual to “act or refuse to act on religious grounds” passed the House and Senate and was vetoed by Gov. Steve Beshear. House Bill 279 is written so broadly that it could be used to subvert existing civil rights laws in Kentucky that protect individuals from discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations.

HB 279 has the potential to “make it harder to pursue criminal prosecutions and civil remedies in everything from child abuse to housing discrimination,” according to a Lexington Herald-Leader editorial, and is “a slippery slope when the state authorizes people to disregard laws,” wrote The Courier-Journal editors.

ACTION #1: Join the Fairness Campaign, ACLU, Kentucky Commission on Human Rights, KFTC and many other groups by calling the Legislative Message line and leaving a message for your representative and "House leadership" asking them to uphold Governor Beshear's veto of HB 279.

ACTION #2: Thank Gov. Beshear for vetoing HB 279. You can leave a message at his office at 502-564-2611 or use his online contact form: http://governor.ky.gov/Pages/contact.aspx

See the governor's veto message

See a list of groups that asked the governor to veto HB 279 (scroll to the bottom)