CAP: Legislative update on partial-birth abortion, prayer in schools, marriage amendment, and scholarship tax credits

In this issue:
	(1) Prayer, Religious Liberty, Partial-Birth Abortion and More! (2) It's Okay to Pray (3) Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Advances (4) Marriage Amendment Referendum (5) Scholarship Tax Credits

(1) Prayer, Religious Liberty, Partial-Birth Abortion and More!

We are making progress on our legislative agenda! The legislative session is always a busy season here at CAP, and I am pleased to be able to update you on the week's activities.

(2) It's Okay to Pray

It's okay to pray in public schools. There's a lot of confusion about what the Constitution means for the individual faith of public school students. Sadly, that confusion has led to suppression of students' rights. Here in Arizona, educators have censored the word "God" from school yearbooks and decorative tiles and refused student religious clubs the opportunity to advertise their meetings like any other club. But public schools are not "religion-free" zones. This year, CAP initiated legislation, sponsored by Rep. Doug Clark, to address some of these issues. HB 2713, the Students' Religious Liberties Act, lists the religious rights of students. There's a big difference between schools promoting religion and students promoting religion. It is unconstitutional for schools to single out the religious views of students for negative treatment. On Wednesday, the House Education Committee passed HB 2713 by a razor thin 5-4 vote. CAP legal counsel Deborah Sheasby provided excellent testimony in support. To get a real-world picture of how committee debates go and how some legislators view religious liberty, I urge you to take time to watch the committee hearing and Deborah's testimony here.

(3) Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Advances

Both the Senate and House gave tentative approval to a state ban on partial-birth abortion on Thursday. You can read more about the bill's progress in today's Arizona Daily Star. A final vote in both houses could happen as early as next week.

(4) Marriage Amendment Referendum

No action was taken this week on the marriage amendment referendum. If you haven't contacted your legislators in support of the marriage amendment, there's still time. Our action alert provides a link to a simple form that you can easily fill out and send in just a minute or two.

(5) Scholarship Tax Credits

Legislators continue working on the state budget. Money is tight. Conservative projections show a $3 billion shortfall. But that hasn't stopped teacher's unions from their usual attacks on school choice in Arizona. Today, over 25,000 students attend the school of their parents' choice through one of Arizona's two scholarship tax-credit programs. It's a good thing when students receive the education their parents want them to have, but it's even better when it saves the state money. Rep. Steve Yarbrough's commentary in this week's East Valley Tribune explains that if these scholarships are dismantled, it would cost Arizona an additional $100 million to educate these kids. School choice in Arizona means more options for parents and a much more efficient use of educational resources. To keep up to date on legislative activity, visit CAP's website, www.azpolicy.org, throughout the week. CAP Legislative Coordinator Jennifer Clark regularly updates bill status. We've also posted Fact Sheets providing summaries on bills we support and a few we don't.