The Illinois Senate has rejected a bill seeking to allow religious institutions to grant degrees without securing the approval of the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE).
A 7-3 vote against resulted from the Senate Higher Education Committee deliberation on the issue.
The measure had been eyed as a solution to a federal lawsuit filed by a group of Bible colleges against the IBHE, citing their right under the First Amendment to uphold free religious exercise and free speech.
The lawsuit, which was filed against IBHE Chairwoman Lindsay K. H. Anderson, contends that the IBHE was ignoring the establishment clause which prohibits a state-sponsored creed.
The 15 Bible schools are fighting for their right to grant degrees for their religious programmes and contend that the state should not have the power to regulate religious programmes.
The schools currently do not have fully fledged collegiate curriculums required by the IBHE to issue degrees, so they are only empowered to grant certificates and diplomas for those who complete their coursework. The schools argue that this depreciates the value of their programmes.
"We don't think there can be state regulation of a religious programme. If there is, then the state is deciding 'which' religion and breaking the establishment clause of the First Amendment," Rev Jim Scudder Jr, president of Dayspring Bible College and Seminary in the Chicago suburb of Mundelein, said in an interview.
Meanwhile, IBHE Executive Director Jim Applegate said that the current law is not an issue of religious exercise but rather an issue of consumer protection.
"We approve many, many degrees — masters of divinity degrees and others — but we never get into the business of telling people what they're supposed to teach, the religious content of their degrees. What we look at are things that have to do with consumer protection," he said.
He added that the law is intended to ensure the quality of education being offered by the schools. He expressed fear that if SB 1609 was approved, it would give any institution claiming to be religious the blanket authority to issue degrees without adhering to state regulation.
