103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4230

AN ACT

To amend the American Indian Religious Freedom Act to

provide for the traditional use of peyote by Indians for

religious purposes, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘American Indian

5 Religious Freedom Act Amendments of 1994’’.
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1 SEC. 2. TRADITIONAL INDIAN RELIGIOUS USE OF THE

2 PEYOTE SACRAMENT.

3 The Act of August 11, 1978 (42 U.S.C. 1996), com4 monly referred to as the ‘‘American Indian Religious Free5 dom Act’’, is amended by adding at the end thereof the

6 following new section:

7 ‘‘SEC. 3. (a) The Congress finds and declares that—

8 ‘‘(1) for many Indian people, the traditional

9 ceremonial use of the peyote cactus as a religious

10 sacrament has for centuries been integral to a way

11 of life, and significant in perpetuating Indian tribes

12 and cultures;

13 ‘‘(2) since 1965, this ceremonial use of peyote

14 by Indians has been protected by Federal regulation;

15 ‘‘(3) while at least 28 States have enacted laws

16 which are similar to, or are in conformance with, the

17 Federal regulation which protects the ceremonial use

18 of peyote by Indian religious practitioners, 22 States

19 have not done so, and this lack of uniformity has

20 created hardship for Indian people who participate

21 in such religious ceremonies;

22 ‘‘(4) the Supreme Court of the United States,

23 in the case of Employment Division v. Smith, 494

24 U.S. 872 (1990), held that the First Amendment

25 does not protect Indian practitioners who use peyote

26 in Indian religious ceremonies, and also raised un-
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1 certainty whether this religious practice would be

2 protected under the compelling State interest stand3 ard; and

4 ‘‘(5) the lack of adequate and clear legal protec5 tion for the religious use of peyote by Indians may

6 serve to stigmatize and marginalize Indian tribes

7 and cultures, and increase the risk that they will be

8 exposed to discriminatory treatment.

9 ‘‘(b)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law,

10 the use, possession, or transportation of peyote by an In11 dian for bona fide traditional ceremonial purposes in con12 nection with the practice of a traditional Indian religion

13 is lawful, and shall not be prohibited by the United States

14 or any State. No Indian shall be penalized or discrimi15 nated against on the basis of such use, possession or

16 transportation, including, but not limited to, denial of oth17 erwise applicable benefits under public assistance pro18 grams.

19 ‘‘(2) This section does not prohibit such reasonable

20 regulation and registration by the Drug Enforcement Ad21 ministration of those persons who cultivate, harvest, or

22 distribute peyote as may be consistent with the purposes

23 of this Act.

24 ‘‘(3) This section does not prohibit application of the

25 provisions of section 481.111(a) of Vernon’s Texas Health
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1 and Safety Code Annotated, in effect on the date of enact2 ment of this section, insofar as those provisions pertain

3 to the cultivation, harvest, and distribution of peyote.

4 ‘‘(4) Nothing in this section shall prohibit any Fed5 eral department or agency, in carrying out its statutory

6 responsibilities and functions, from promulgating regula7 tions establishing reasonable limitations on the use or in8 gestion of peyote prior to or during the performance of

9 duties by sworn law enforcement officers or personnel di10 rectly involved in public transportation or any other safe11 ty-sensitive positions where the performance of such duties

12 may be adversely affected by such use or ingestion. Such

13 regulations shall be adopted only after consultation with

14 representatives of traditional Indian religions for which

15 the sacramental use of peyote is integral to their practice.

16 Any regulation promulgated pursuant to this section shall

17 be subject to the balancing test set forth in section 3 of

18 the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (Public Law 103–

19 141; 42 U.S.C. 2000bb–1).

20 ‘‘(5) This section shall not be construed as requiring

21 prison authorities to permit, nor shall it be construed to

22 prohibit prison authorities from permitting access to pe23 yote by Indians while incarcerated within Federal or State

24 prison facilities.
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1 ‘‘(6) Subject to the provisions of the Religious Free2 dom Restoration Act (Public Law 103–141; 42 U.S.C.

3 2000bb–1), this section shall not be construed to prohibit

4 States from enacting or enforcing reasonable traffic safety

5 laws or regulations.

6 ‘‘(7) Subject to the provisions of the Religious Free7 dom Restoration Act (Public Law 103–141; 42 U.S.C.

8 2000bb–1), this section does not prohibit the Secretary of

9 Defense from promulgating regulations establishing rea10 sonable limitations on the use, possession, transportation,

11 or distribution of peyote to promote military readiness,

12 safety, or compliance with international law or laws of

13 other countries. Such regulations shall be adopted only

14 after consultation with representatives of traditional In15 dian religions for which the sacramental use of peyote is

16 integral to their practice.

17 ‘‘(c) For purposes of this section—

18 ‘‘(1) the term ‘Indian’ means a member of an

19 Indian tribe;

20 ‘‘(2) the term ‘Indian tribe’ means any tribe,

21 band, nation, pueblo, or other organized group or

22 community of Indians, including any Alaska Native

23 village (as defined in, or established pursuant to, the

24 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C.

25 1601 et seq.)), which is recognized as eligible for the
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1 special programs and services provided by the

2 United States to Indians because of their status as

3 Indians;

4 ‘‘(3) the term ‘Indian religion’ means any reli5 gion—

6 ‘‘(A) which is practiced by Indians, and

7 ‘‘(B) the origin and interpretation of which

8 is from within a traditional Indian culture or

9 community; and

10 ‘‘(4) the term ‘State’ means any State of the

11 United States, and any political subdivision thereof.

12 ‘‘(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed as ab13 rogating, diminishing, or otherwise affecting—

14 ‘‘(1) the inherent rights of any Indian tribe;

15 ‘‘(2) the rights, express or implicit, of any In16 dian tribe which exist under treaties, executive or17 ders, and laws of the United States;

18 ‘‘(3) the inherent right of Indians to practice

19 their religions; and
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1 ‘‘(4) the right of Indians to practice their reli2 gions under any Federal or State law.’’.

Passed the House of Representatives August 8,

1994.

Attest:

Clerk.
103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4230

AN ACT

To amend the American Indian Religious Freedom

purposes.by Indians for religious purposes, and for otherAct to provide for the traditional use of peyote