Marriage and Religious Freedom Act

Summary: Marriage and Religious Freedom Act - Prohibits the federal government from taking an adverse action against a person on the basis that such person acts in accordance with a religious belief that: (1) marriage is or should be recognized as the union of one man and one woman, or (2) sexual relations are properly reserved to such a marriage. Defines &quot;adverse action&quot; as any federal government action to discriminate against such person, including: (1) denying or revoking certain tax exemptions or disallowing a deduction of any charitable contribution made to or by such person; (2) denying or excluding such person from receiving any federal grant, contract, cooperative agreement, loan, license, certification, accreditation, employment, or similar position or status; or (3) denying or withholding any benefit under a federal benefit program. Permits a person to assert an actual or threatened violation of this Act as a claim or defense in a judicial proceeding and to obtain compensatory damages or other appropriate relief against the federal government. Authorizes the Attorney General (DOJ) to bring actions to enforce this Act.  Specifies that the term &quot;person&quot; includes any person regardless of religious affiliation, as well as corporations and other entities regardless of for-profit or nonprofit status.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Marriage and Religious Freedom 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Leading legal scholars concur that conflicts between 
        same-sex marriage and religious liberty are real and should be 
        legislatively addressed.
            (2) As the President stated in response to the decision of 
        the United States Supreme Court on the Defense of Marriage Act 
        in 2013, ``Americans hold a wide range of views'' on the issue 
        of same-sex marriage, and ``maintaining our Nation's commitment 
        to religious freedom'' is ``vital''.
            (3) Protecting religious freedom from Government intrusion 
        is a Government interest of the highest order. Legislatively 
        enacted measures advance this interest by remedying, deterring, 
        and preventing Government interference with religious exercise 
        in a way that complements the protections mandated by the First 
        Amendment to the United States Constitution.
            (4) Laws that protect the free exercise of religious 
        beliefs about marriage will encourage private citizens and 
        institutions to demonstrate similar tolerance and therefore 
        contribute to a more respectful, diverse, and peaceful society.

SEC. 3. PROTECTION OF THE FREE EXERCISE OF RELIGIOUS BELIEFS.

    (a) In General.--The Federal Government shall not take an adverse 
action against a person, on the basis that such person acts in 
accordance with a religious belief that marriage is or should be 
recognized as the union of one man and one woman, or that sexual 
relations are properly reserved to such a marriage.
    (b) Adverse Action Defined.--As used in subsection (a), an adverse 
action means any action taken by the Federal Government--
            (1) acting through the Administrator of the Internal 
        Revenue Service, to--
                    (A) deny or revoke an exemption from taxation under 
                section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 of 
                such person; or
                    (B) disallow a deduction for Federal tax purposes 
                of any charitable contribution made to or by such 
                person;
            (2) to deny or exclude such person from receiving any 
        Federal grant, contract, cooperative agreement, loan, license, 
        certification, accreditation, employment, or other similar 
        position or status;
            (3) to deny or withhold from such person any benefit under 
        a Federal benefit program; or
            (4) to otherwise discriminate against such person.

SEC. 4. JUDICIAL RELIEF.

    (a) Cause of Action.--A person may assert an actual or threatened 
violation of this Act as a claim or defense in a judicial proceeding 
and obtain compensatory damages, injunctive relief, declaratory relief, 
or any other appropriate relief against the Federal Government. 
Standing to assert a claim or defense under this section shall be 
governed by the general rules of standing under article III of the 
Constitution.
    (b) Attorneys' Fees.--Section 722(b) of the Revised Statutes (42 
U.S.C. 1988(b)) is amended by inserting ``Marriage and Religious 
Freedom Act,'' after ``the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized 
Persons Act of 2000,''.
    (c) Authority of United States To Enforce This Act.--The Attorney 
General of the United States may bring an action for injunctive or 
declaratory relief to enforce compliance with this Act. Nothing in this 
subsection shall be construed to deny, impair, or otherwise affect any 
right or authority of the Attorney General, the United States, or any 
agency, officer, or employee of the United States, acting under any law 
other than this subsection, to institute or intervene in any 
proceeding.

SEC. 5. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.

    (a) Broad Construction.--This Act shall be construed in favor of a 
broad protection of religious beliefs, to the maximum extent permitted 
by the terms of this Act and the Constitution.
    (b) No Preemption, Repeal, or Narrow Construction.--Nothing in this 
Act shall be construed to preempt State law, or repeal Federal law, 
that is equally as protective of religious beliefs as, or more 
protective of religious beliefs than, this Act. Nothing in this Act 
shall be considered to construe any State or Federal law protecting 
religious beliefs more narrowly than such law otherwise would be 
construed.
    (c) Severability.--If any provision of this Act or any application 
of such provision to any person or circumstance is held to be 
unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act and the application of the 
provision to any other person or circumstance shall not be affected.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Federal benefit program.--The term ``Federal benefit 
        program'' has the meaning given that term in section 552a of 
        title 5, United States Code.
            (2) Federal government.--The term ``Federal Government'' 
        includes a branch, department, agency, instrumentality, or 
        official of the United States.
            (3) Person.--The term ``person'' has the meaning given such 
        term in section 1 of title 1, United States Code, and includes 
        any person regardless of religious affiliation or lack thereof, 
        and regardless of for-profit or nonprofit status.