Ark. governor retreats on religious bill

Hutchison pressured by businesses to veto it

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson backed away Wednesday from his promise to sign a controversial religious-objections bill , bowing to pressure from critics, including some of the state’s biggest employers, who say the legislation is anti-gay.

The Republican governor said he wants the Leg- islature either to recall the bill from his desk or pass a follow-up measure that would make the proposal more closely mirror a federal religious-freedom law.

“What is important from an Arkansas standpoint is one, we get the right balance. And secondly, we make sure that we communicate we’re not going to be a state that fails to recognize the diversity of our workplace, our economy and our future,” Hutchinson said during a news conference at the state Capitol.

Hutchinson initially supported the bill, and on Tuesday his office said he planned to sign it into law.

But a day later, his position had changed. After Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed a similar measure last week, Pence and fellow Republicans endured days of sharp criticism from around the country. The Indiana governor is now seeking fol low-up legislation to address concerns that the law could allow businesses to discriminate based on sexual orientation.

Hutchinson also faced pressure from the state’s top employers, including Wal-Mart, which has asked for the bill to be ve- toed. Little Rock’s mayor, the city’s Chamber of Commerce and Arkansasbased data-services company Acxiom have urged the governor to reject the bill.

Hutchinson noted how divisive the issue has become, saying his son Seth was among those who signed a petition asking him to veto the bill.

“This is a bill that in ordinary times would not be controversial,” the governor said. “But these are not ordinary times.”

Neither the Indiana nor Arkansas law specifically mentions gays and lesbians, but opponents are concerned that the language contained in them could offer a legal defense to businesses and other institutions that refuse to serve gays, such as caterers, florists or photographers with religious objections to sa me-sex marriage.

Supporters insist the law will give religious objectors a chance to bring their case before a judge.

Similar proposals have been introduced this year i n more t han a dozen states, patterned on the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, with some differences. Nineteen other states have similar laws on the books.

Hutchinson did not specifically call for changes that would prohibit the law from being used to deny services.