'Save Chick-fil-A' bill approved by Texas House, despite emotional pleas from LGBT members
AUSTIN — A bill cast by conservatives as religious freedom protection and by liberals as a tool to discriminate against LGBT people was tentatively passed by the Texas House on Monday.
The "Save Chick-fil-A" bill needs one more procedural vote from the House before it heads back to the Senate for final approval of a House amendment. Then it goes to Gov. Greg Abbott's desk for his signature or veto. Senate Bill 1978 passed by a 79-62 vote; Houston-area Republican Rep. Sarah Davis broke with her party to oppose it.
Fort Worth GOP Rep. Matt Krause, the House sponsor, said the bill stops the government from taking adverse action against a business or person for their contributions or memberships in religious organizations. The bill was born out of the city of San Antonio's vote to boot Chick-fil-A from the airport based on its charitable donations to certain Christian organizations.
"What we want to make sure is if you donate to the Salvation Army, you won't be labeled as a bigoted," Krause said. He said Chick-fil-A was unfairly labeled as anti-LGBT because of its donations to organizations like the Salvation Army and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, which also receive donations from companies such as Walmart and Home Depot.
Read more: https://www.dallasnews.com/news/texas-legislature/2019/05/20/save-chick-fil-abill-approved-texas-house-despite-emotional-pleas-lgbt-members
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