There is a bill in the Missouri House of Representatives that should cause us all a great deal of concern. The bill was heard in the Emerging Issues Committee on Monday, March 2nd, and was voted “do pass” by the committee on March 11.
The Sponsor of HB3142 is Cameron Parker, is not an “evil politician”, she is a sister in Christ. We must deal with this situation on the merits of the proposed legislation itself. We all make poor choices from time to time, this is one of hers. We must lover her, while at the same time guiding her to make a better choice on this issue. Remember, we wrestle not with flesh and blood, but with principalities and powers….
So let’s evaluate HB3142 on its’ own merits. Here are the changes to state statute that HB3142 proposes.
210.203. “The department of elementary and secondary education shall maintain a record of substantiated, signed parental complaints against . . . summer camps or day camps . . . and shall make such complaints and findings available to the public.”
A. I would contend that DESE should not keep any records of any church camp at all. What valid reason would a state department of elementary and secondary education have for keeping any record of a religious entity?
B. The above revised statute does not specific what kind of complaints would be kept in such records. If these records are only of safety issues, the language of the bill should say that. But having a record of all “substantiated, signed parental complaints” would include the complaint against a camp for not using preferred pronouns for their child, or affirming their gender identity. A camp may even teach that marriage is God’s plan and co-habitation is sin, thus prompting a substantiated and signed complaint from an aggrieved parent.
C. The above statute does not indicate how long such records will be kept. What is the statute of limitations on being offended? Will those records be kept in perpetuity? Or until such time as the camp comes under new management? Or will they be kept for a specific time, such as three years, and then purged? We don’t know. And I cannot agree to an unknown.
210.211 “It shall be unlawful . . . for any person or organization to establish, maintain, or operate a summer or day camp for children . . . without having in effect a written license granted by the department of elementary and secondary education . . .”
A. Under current law, “Any summer or day camp that is conducted in good faith primarily to provide recreation” is exempt, that is stricken from the proposed bill. Currently, “Any child care facility maintained or operated under the exclusive control of a religious organization” is also exempt. But the proposed bill would add to that statement “…not including summer camps or day camps…” thus specifically removing them from the exemption list and placing them clearly within the requirement to be licensed by the state.
B. Furthermore, “any graded boarding school that is conducted in good faith primarily to provide education” is currently, and would still be exempt. To clarify, a summer camp or day camp would be required to have a license from DESE, but an educational institution such as a boarding school would not. Why would the state’s educational bureaucracy not license an educational institution, and why would they license a non-educational camp?
C. Later in the list of exemptions, current statute includes “any childcare facility maintained or operated under the exclusive control of a religious organization.” That’s good, religious organizations should be exempt from government control – that is called religious liberty, and is a foundational principle of American freedom. But HB3142 would change that. It extends the sentence by adding “….not including summer camps or day camps as defined in section 210.201. WHAT?! This alone should be enough to reject this piece of legislation. This is a clear grasp at squashing religious liberty and making DESE supreme authority over the consciences of free men and women.
D. This same Section (210.211) adds paragraph 6 which says “Nothing in this section shall prevent the department from promulgating rules or regulations relating to supervision requirements and capacity limitations for summer camps or day camps.” In case the previously discussed aspects of this legislation were not enough to reveal a violation of Religious Liberty, this statement must. Having already claimed authority over summer and day camps operated exclusively by religious organizations, the bill would now extend that authority to make rules and regulations relating to supervision requirements. In what universe does any religious entity allow an elected state bureaucracy the right to set rules and regulations for supervision and maintain any semblance of liberty. I am not an attorney, but this is so flagrant a violation of the “free exercise of religion” that any literate citizen can understand it.
There is more to this legislation to be discussed at a later time. For now, contact your state representative and state senator and have them kill this piece of legislation.
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