The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently considered a long-running religious land use dispute involving the Thai Meditation Association of Alabama (TMAA) and the city of Mobile, Alabama. The...more
Two Amish men have sued Auburn, Kentucky (population approx. 1,300) in a Kentucky state court over an ordinance requiring that horses wear equine diapers. The ordinance, passed in 2014, is intended to keep town streets clear...more
We noted in our previous post that the U.S. Department of Justice, in its latest report, has stated that one of the biggest trends in religious land use disputes since 2010 has been the drastic increase in disputes involving...more
A Massachusetts Superior Court is soon to consider the interplay of three important planning principles – historic preservation, sustainable development, and freedom of religion. A Unitarian Universalist church is suing the...more
8/1/2016
/ Churches ,
Climate Change ,
First Amendment ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Global Warming ,
Historic Preservation ,
Open Meetings Act ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Solar Energy ,
Solar Panels
The Department of Justice (DOJ) released a new report on its involvement in RLUIPA cases. The report, “Update on the Justice Department’s Enforcement of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act: 2010-2016,”...more
Guru Gobind Singh Sikh Center, Inc. (the “Temple”), on June 29, 2016 in the Eastern District of New York, sued the Town of Oyster Bay, New York, the Town Board, and several Town Officials (together, the “Defendants”) after...more
7/22/2016
/ Cause of Action Accrual ,
Environmental Review ,
First Amendment ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Land Use Restrictions ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
SEQRA ,
Site Plans ,
Substantial Burden
What is Religious Exercise? remains a prevalent question in religious land use news this week. Below, find our semi-regular summary of news items involving local government, religion, and land use....more
10/26/2015
/ American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Freedom From Religion Foundation ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Public Housing ,
Religious Displays ,
Religious Expression ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Zoning Laws
On September 24, Rock Church of Easton (Rock Church) filed an “Emergency Motion for a Temporary Restraining Order and /or Preliminary Injunction” against the City of Easton, Pennsylvania (the City or Easton) and its Bureau of...more
10/8/2015
/ Affordable Housing ,
Building Codes ,
Building Inspectors ,
Churches ,
Community Development ,
Construction Industry ,
Demolition ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
Restraining Orders ,
RLUIPA
In June 2014, Plaintiff Hope Rising Community Church sought to establish a place of worship in Penn Hills, Pennsylvania. According to its complaint, Pastor Harry Hoff met with Penn Hill’s planning and code enforcement...more
The Arkansas Senate, in passing Bill no. 939 (now Act 1231), authorized the placement of a Ten Commandments monument on the grounds of the Arkansas State Capitol to purportedly “help the people of the United States and of...more
We’ve been monitoring news items involving local government, religion, and land use that may be of interest to our readers. Below is what has caught our attention.
Livingston Daily reports that Genoa Charter Township...more
8/24/2015
/ Corporate Contributions ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Holt v Hobbs ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Religious Institutions ,
Religious Schools ,
RLUIPA ,
Same-Sex Marriage ,
SCOTUS ,
Special Use Permit ,
Tax Exemptions
Two Houston churches are using the Texas Religious Freedom Restoration Act (“TRFRA”) to challenge the Houston Housing Authority’s actions to acquire their properties by eminent domain as part of an urban renewal project. The...more
Religion Clause Blog reports that Indiana’s First Church of Cannabis is using the state’s recently enacted religious freedom law to protect its founder and two members from prosecution for possession of marijuana. The Church...more
7/13/2015
/ American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) ,
Churches ,
Controlled Substances ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Discrimination ,
DOMA ,
Drug Possession ,
Equal Protection ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Freedom From Religion Foundation ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Marijuana ,
Marriage Equality ,
Prayer ,
Religion ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Same-Sex Marriage
Al Madany Islamic Center and the Norwalk Zoning Commission have agreed to the terms of a proposed settlement stemming from the Commission’s 2012 denial of the Islamic Center’s proposal to construct a 27,000 square-foot mosque...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has sued the City of St. Anthony Village under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) after the City Council, in 2012, denied the Abu Huraira Islamic Center’s...more
In MAUM Meditation House of Truth v. Lake County, Illinois, No. 13-cv-3794 (N.D. Ill. 2014), the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ruled that Lake County, Illinois did not violate MAUM...more
7/23/2014
/ Administrative Remedies ,
Building Codes ,
Due Process ,
Equal Protection ,
Free Exercise Clause ,
Freedom of Religion ,
Mixed-Use Zoning ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) ,
Religious Institutions ,
RLUIPA ,
Strict Scrutiny Standard