ETBU Appealing Ruling on Contraceptives
Posted/updated on: July 9, 2015 at 5:15 pm
WASHINGTON — An East Texas school is one of three institutions asking the Supreme Court to protect them from millions of dollars in IRS fines that will be triggered if they refuse to comply with a HHS mandate. The petition was filed on behalf of East Texas Baptist University in Marshall, Houston Baptist University, and Pennsylvania-based Westminster Theological Seminary. The petition seeks to reverse a recent court decision that requires them to provide contraceptive coverage in its employee insurance coverage or face fines by the federal government. Filing the petition Wednesday were the same two firms that won the Hobby Lobby case against the government’s HHS mandate one year ago, the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and former Solicitor General and leading Supreme Court advocate Paul Clement.
According to a news release on the ETBU web site, the Supreme Court has already granted interim relief from the HHS Mandate to religious groups five times. The schools’ appeal makes it highly likely that the Court will decide whether religious universities will be required to provide contraceptive coverage in violation of their faith in the upcoming term. “The government has already told thousands of businesses they don’t need to comply with the HHS Mandate,” said Diana Verm, Legal Counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. “So why is it bullying nuns, religious schools, soup kitchens, and homeless shelters unless they comply? It makes no sense.”
“The HHS Mandate discriminates against the religious beliefs this school was founded on in 1912,” said Blair Blackburn, President of East Texas Baptist University. “We are seeking relief from the Supreme Court so that the University may continue educating our students honoring these same fundamental principles. We shouldn’t be forced to make the choice of unlawful governmental regulation over our religious beliefs.”
The Court is likely to consider all of the petitions in late September or early October. If the petition is granted, the case would be argued and decided before the end of the Court’s term in June 2016.
