Around the Web

Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web:

  • The 10th Circuit held that that the nondiscrimination requirements of Colorado’s Universal Preschool Program do not violate the free exercise or expressive association rights of Catholic schools by excluding them from the program due to their policy of considering the sexual orientation and gender identity of applicants and their parents in making admissions decisions. The Court cited the program’s general applicability in reaching their decision that it does not discriminate against religious schools specifically.
  • A federal district court in Idaho ruled that a charter school violated Truth Family Bible Church’s First Amendment rights when it canceled a lease that allowed the church to hold Sunday services inside its gymnasium.
  • Students and former students at Brooklyn yeshivas, as well as parents, filed a class action lawsuit claiming that New York allows yeshivas to meet state education requirements “without reliably teaching core subjects such as English, math and civics.”
  • An Illinois state appellate court held that the state’s Insurance Abortion Coverage Mandate did not violate a Baptist group’s rights under the Illinois Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The Court reasoned that since the group is neither required to provide insurance that is regulated by the Illinois Department of Insurance, or any insurance at all for that matter, nor subject to any tax or penalty for failing to provide this type of insurance, the regulation did not violate the group’s rights.
  • King Charles announced that he has approved the nomination of Bishop Sarah Mullally for election by the College of Canons of Canterbury Cathedral as Archbishop of Canterbury. Bishop Mullally would be the first woman to hold the position.
  • The FDA recently approved a generic version of the abortion pill, mifepristone. Conservatives objected to the move, including Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who called approval of the pill “a betrayal.”