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Senate advances substitute HB 85 after committee of the whole presentation on religion in schools
Summary
Senate members heard a committee-of-the-whole presentation on substitute HB 85, which clarifies permissible school practices around student religious expression and conscience protections; the chamber placed the bill on the third‑reading calendar after a favorable committee report.
Salt Lake City — Senators heard a detailed presentation and answered questions on substitute House Bill 85 on Feb. 18, a bill intended to clarify constitutional and statutory limits on religious activity in public schools and to set out boundaries for voluntary student expression.
Senator Hissard introduced the substitute as a product of the Religious Liberties Committee and said it had the ACLU’s agreement that the bill is “facially constitutional” while cautioning that the ACLU would monitor how it is applied. Matt Hilton, who appeared in the Committee of the Whole to explain implementation details, summarized the bill as intended to clarify for educators and parents what schools may not do under the federal Constitution, while also providing a broad set of permissible, student‑initiated activities outside of classroom instruction.
Hilton told senators the substitute includes conscience provisions allowing parents or secondary students who object to curriculum or activities to request reasonable academic alternatives. He stressed that student‑initiated voluntary religious activities during nonclassroom time and voluntary off‑campus participation would be protected, and said draft regulations were being developed to guide districts on implementation.
Senators asked practical questions about choir participation and how the statute would operate where students are invited to perform at religious events; Hilton said the bill and the forthcoming regulations distinguish student‑initiated voluntary activity from mandatory school actions and would permit voluntary participation without mandatory attendance.
After the Committee of the Whole, the Senate called and recorded a roll call: Substitute HB 85 passed 23‑0 (6 absent) and was placed on the third‑reading calendar for final consideration.
The bill’s next steps are third reading and a final vote on the floor; supporters and some civil‑liberties groups indicated they will watch the bill’s application as districts implement regulatory guidance.
