Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/20pdf/19-123_g3bi.pdf
Page Number: 19.0

Cite as:  593 U. S. ____ (2021) 

15 

Opinion of the Court 

Lukumi, 508 U. S., at 546–547.  The City offers no compel-
ling reason why it has a particular interest in denying an
exception to CSS while making them available to others. 

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* 

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As  Philadelphia  acknowledges,  CSS  has  “long  been  a
point of light in the City’s foster-care system.”  Brief for City
Respondents 1.  CSS seeks only an accommodation that will
allow it to continue serving the children of Philadelphia in 
a  manner  consistent  with  its  religious  beliefs;  it  does  not 
seek to impose those beliefs on anyone else.  The refusal of 
Philadelphia to contract with CSS for the provision of foster
care services unless it agrees to certify same-sex couples as 
foster  parents  cannot  survive  strict  scrutiny,  and  violates
the First Amendment. 

In view of our conclusion that the actions of the City vio-
late  the  Free  Exercise  Clause,  we  need  not  consider 
whether they also violate the Free Speech Clause.

The judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for 
the Third Circuit is reversed, and the case is remanded for 
further proceedings consistent with this opinion. 

It is so ordered.