Kansas’s Republican-led legislature voted Wednesday to rescind Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s coronavirus-related order capping religious assemblies at 10 people the week of Passover and Easter.
Kelly issued the order Tuesday, prompting pushback from some state lawmakers, who accused her of violating religious liberty with the order intended to comply with federal social distancing guidelines. Lawmakers voted along party lines to strike down the order Wednesday, according to the The Wichita Eagle.
State Attorney General Derek Schmidt had written in a memo Wednesday that the order was likely unconstitutional and discouraged law enforcement from enforcing it.
“In our view, Kansas statute and the Kansas Constitution’s Bill of Rights each forbid the governor from criminalizing participation in worship gatherings by executive order,” Schmidt wrote.
Kelly had said on Tuesday that “this time of year is one defined by renewal celebration and community for the people of all faith. The disruptions created by this global health crisis has forced us all to approach it differently, regardless of our religious beliefs.”
Richard Levy, a constitutional law professor at the University of Kansas, told The Wichita Eagle that precedent was likely on Kelly’s side, saying the Supreme Court has held laws that do not burden specific religions are generally considered valid.
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JUST IN: Kansas legislature strikes down governor's directive limiting size of religious gatherings https://t.co/z1DNLsw8t6 pic.twitter.com/7sT70YGwV2
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