to the maximum extent permitted by its terms and the
Constitution.
(h) SEVERABILITY.—If any provision of this Act or
of an amendment made by this Act, or any application
of such provision to any person or circumstance, is held
to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act, the
amendments made by this Act, and the application of the
provision to any other person or circumstance shall not
be affected.
SEC. 6. ESTABLISHMENT CLAUSE UNAFFECTED.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to affect, inter-
pret, or in any way address that portion of the first
amendment to the Constitution prohibiting laws respect-
ing an establishment of religion (referred to in this section
as the ‘‘Establishment Clause’’). Granting government
funding, benefits, or exemptions, to the extent permissible
under the Establishment Clause, shall not constitute a vio-
lation of this Act. As used in this section, the term ‘‘grant-
ing’’, used with respect to government funding, benefits,
or exemptions, does not include the denial of government
funding, benefits, or exemptions.
SEC. 7. AMENDMENTS TO RELIGIOUS FREEDOM RESTORA-
TION ACT.
(a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 5 of the Religious Free-
dom Restoration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 2000bb–2) is
amended—
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘a State, or
subdivision of a State’’ and inserting ‘‘a covered en-
tity or a subdivision of such an entity’’;
(2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘term’’ and all
that follows through ‘‘includes’’ and inserting ‘‘term
‘covered entity’ means’’; and
(3) in paragraph (4), by striking all after
‘‘means,’’ and inserting ‘‘any exercise of religion,
whether or not compelled by, or central to, a system
of religious belief, and includes (A) the use, building,
or conversion of real property by a person or entity
intending that property for religious exercise; and
(B) any conduct protected as exercise of religion
under the first amendment to the Constitution.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 6(a) of the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C.
2000bb–3(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘and State’’.
SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Act—
(1) the term ‘‘religious exercise’’ means any ex-
ercise of religion, whether or not compelled by, or
central to, a system of religious belief, and includes
(A) the use, building, or conversion of real property
by a person or entity intending that property for re-
ligious exercise; and (B) any conduct protected as
exercise of religion under the first amendment to the
Constitution;
(2) the term ‘‘Free Exercise Clause’’ means
that portion of the first amendment to the Constitu-
tion that proscribes laws prohibiting the free exercise
of religion and includes the application of that pro-
scription under the 14th amendment to the Con-
stitution;
(3) the term ‘‘land use regulation’’ means a law
or decision by a government that limits or restricts
a private person’s uses or development of land, or of
structures affixed to land, where the law or decision
applies to one or more particular parcels of land or
to land within one or more designated geographical
zones, and where the private person has an owner-
ship, leasehold, easement, servitude, or other prop-
erty interest in the regulated land, or a contract or
option to acquire such an interest;
(4) the term ‘‘program or activity’’ means a
program or activity as defined in paragraph (1) or
(2) of section 606 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
(42 U.S.C. 2000d–4a);
(5) the term ‘‘demonstrates’’ means meets the
burdens of going forward with the evidence and of
persuasion; and
(6) the term ‘‘government’’—
(A) means—
(i) a State, county, municipality, or
other governmental entity created under
the authority of a State;
(ii) any branch, department, agency,
instrumentality, subdivision, or official of
an entity listed in clause (i); and
(iii) any other person acting under
color of State law; and
(B) for the purposes of sections 3(a) and
5, includes the United States, a branch, depart-
ment, agency, instrumentality or official of the
United States, and any person acting under
color of Federal law.
Passed the House of Representatives July 15, 1999.
Attest:
Clerk.