From: Report on the Tenth Anniversary of the Religious Land Use and
Institutionalized Persons Act
United States Department of Justice
September 22, 2010
"And, as with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, these protections continue to be critical tools in
the federal government’s arsenal to combat religious animosity. The Justice Department
used these tools to prosecute several men who, in 2008, vandalized and burned down the
Islamic Center of Columbia, Tennessee. And in 2010, an individual pled guilty to
vandalizing a synagogue in Mobile, Alabama, by spray-painting neo-Nazi markings on the
building.
These crimes remind us that bigotry and hatred still exist in too many communities in our
nation, and that we must continue to use the laws of the land to combat acts of
discrimination and hate.
But overt discrimination and violence are not the only threats to religious liberty.
Recognizing this, 10 years ago lawmakers once again came together to protect religious
liberty by passing the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA),
which was signed into law on September 22, 2000.1 The law, which passed both houses of
Congress unanimously and was supported by a broad coalition of religiously and
ideologically diverse groups, addresses religious discrimination and government
infringement of religious liberty in two areas: local land-use laws, such as zoning and
landmarking ordinances, and the religious exercise of persons confined to institutions.
Upon signing the Act, President Clinton said, “Religious liberty is a constitutional value of
the highest order, and the Framers of the Constitution included protection for the free
exercise of religion in the very first Amendment. This Act recognizes the importance the
free exercise of religion plays in our democratic society.”2
In the ten years since its passage, RLUIPA has helped secure the ability of thousands of
individuals and institutions to practice their faiths freely and without discrimination. This
has come both through victories in courts as well as through government officials
voluntarily modifying their behavior to comply with the law."
Here is a cite with the full text of RLUIPA.
