In the Senate of the United States,
October 27 (legislative day, October 13), 1993.
Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representa-
tives (H.R. 1308) entitled ‘‘An Act to protect the free exer-
cise of religion’’, do pass with the following
AMENDMENT:
Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Religious Freedom Res-
toration Act of 1993’’.
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF
PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) the framers of the Constitution, recognizing
free exercise of religion as an unalienable right, se-
cured its protection in the First Amendment to the
Constitution;
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(2) laws ‘‘neutral’’ toward religion may burden
religious exercise as surely as laws intended to inter-
fere with religious exercise;
(3) governments should not substantially burden
religious exercise without compelling justification;
(4) in Employment Division v. Smith, 494 U.S.
872 (1990) the Supreme Court virtually eliminated
the requirement that the government justify burdens
on religious exercise imposed by laws neutral toward
religion; and
(5) the compelling interest test as set forth in
prior Federal court rulings is a workable test for
striking sensible balances between religious liberty
and competing prior governmental interests.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to restore the compelling interest test as set
forth in Sherbert v. Verner, 374 U.S. 398 (1963) and
Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205 (1972) and to guar-
antee its application in all cases where free exercise
of religion is substantially burdened; and
(2) to provide a claim or defense to persons
whose religious exercise is substantially burdened by
government.
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SEC. 3. FREE EXERCISE OF RELIGION PROTECTED.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Government shall not substantially
burden a person’s exercise of religion even if the burden re-
sults from a rule of general applicability, except as provided
in subsection (b).
(b) EXCEPTION.—Government may substantially bur-
den a person’s exercise of religion only if it demonstrates
that application of the burden to the person—
(1) is in furtherance of a compelling govern-
mental interest; and
(2) is the least restrictive means of furthering
that compelling governmental interest.
(c) JUDICIAL RELIEF.—A person whose religious exer-
cise has been burdened in violation of this section may as-
sert that violation as a claim or defense in a judicial pro-
ceeding and obtain appropriate relief against a 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.
SEC. 4. ATTORNEYS FEES.
(a) JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS.—Section 722 of the Re-
vised Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1988) is amended by inserting
‘‘the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993,’’ before ‘‘or
title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964’’.
(b) 
ADMINISTRATIVE
PROCEEDINGS.—Section
504(b)(1)(C) of title 5, United States Code, is amended—
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(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause (ii);
(2) by striking the semicolon at the end of clause
(iii) and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and
(3) by inserting ‘‘(iv) the Religious Freedom Res-
toration Act of 1993;’’ after clause (iii).
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Act—
(1) the term ‘‘government’’ includes a branch, de-
partment, agency, instrumentality, and official (or
other person acting under color of law) of the United
States, a State, or a subdivision of a State;
(2) the term ‘‘State’’ includes the District of Co-
lumbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and each
territory and possession of the United States;
(3) the term ‘‘demonstrates’’ means meets the
burdens of going forward with the evidence and of
persuasion; and
(4) the term ‘‘exercise of religion’’ means the ex-
ercise of religion under the First Amendment to the
Constitution.
SEC. 6. APPLICABILITY.
(a) IN GENERAL.—This Act applies to all Federal and
State law, and the implementation of that law, whether
statutory or otherwise, and whether adopted before or after
the enactment of this Act.