Proposed legislation in the Alabama House of Representatives would require religiously affiliated private schools or church schools to honor religious vaccine exemptions.
House Bill 444 (HB444) is the third vaccine-related bill filed by State Rep. Mack Butler (R-Rainbow City) in the 2025 session. The bill requires any religiously affiliated private school or church school that requires students to be vaccinated or tested for a disease to accept religious exemptions.
Any school that fails to follow the bill's provisions would be subject to corporate income tax and ad valorem tax without the ability to claim an exemption. It would also not be permitted to use funds from the state's school choice program, the CHOOSE Act.
The bill also includes a provision that appears in other legislation this session and has already caused heated discussion.
HB 444 has a portion mandating what is required of parents and guardians when filing for a religious exemption.
The bill states: "To be granted a religious exemption, a parent or guardian of the student may submit a written statement to the school declaring that he or she wishes to be exempt because the vaccination or testing conflicts with his or her religious tenets and practices. The parent or guardian shall not be required to explain the reason for the exemption, certify the exemption with any third party, or otherwise receive approval from the school, a religious institution, or any other entity."
Virtually identical language is used in Senate Bill 85 (SB85) by State Rep. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur), whose bill makes the religious exemption language uniform across all state schools. Currently, exemptions must be applied for at the local health department. The provision also applies to parents or students attending a university.
During the public hearing on SB85, Orr mentioned instances of parents being treated poorly or having to jump through several bureaucratic hoops.
House Bill 367 (HB367) would ban public funds from being used in vaccine advertising and provide penalties for violating agencies. House Bill 316 (HB316) would require food labels to include information on the inclusion of "vaccines" or "vaccine materials."
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