West Virginia House forums: right to work, religious freedom
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Lawmakers are hosting public meetings on two bills sparking divide in the Republican-led Legislature.
A House Judiciary Committee hearing on right-to-work legislation will be at 8:30 a.m. Thursday. A hearing on a religious freedom bill will follow at 9:30 a.m.
Right-to-work legislation bars employers from requiring workers to pay union dues as a condition of employment. They'd still receive union representation.
The Senate passed the bill on a 17-16 party-line vote.
Lawmakers say they want to strike a balance with a religious freedom bill after backlash over Indiana's similar law.
Critics said Indiana's law permitted discrimination against gays on religious grounds. The law was eventually adjusted.
The tourism group Visit Indy said Indiana might have lost $60 million when a dozen groups decided against hosting conventions in Indianapolis because of the law.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.
The Gayly 1/28/2016 @ 10:13 AM CST