(a) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, state and local governments shall contract for goods and services provided through, or administered by, the departments of children’s services, health, and human services without discrimination against religious organizations or discrimination based on race, age, color, sex, or national origin and shall provide beneficiaries of assistance under the programs established by law with forms of disbursement that are redeemable with these organizations that are awarded a contract. State and local governments may use any state, federal, local or other moneys available for these purposes.
Terms Used In Tennessee Code 12-3-308
Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
Contract: means any duly authorized and legally binding written agreement for the procurement of goods and services. See Tennessee Code 12-3-201
Goods: means all personal property, including, but not limited to, supplies, equipment, materials, printing, and insurance. See Tennessee Code 12-3-201
Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
Services: means all services and agreements obligating the state, except services for highway and road improvements governed by title 54 and design and construction services governed by title 4, chapter 15. See Tennessee Code 12-3-201
sex: means a person's immutable biological sex as determined by anatomy and genetics existing at the time of birth and evidence of a person's biological sex. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
State agency: means any state governmental entity, other than the central procurement office and those state entities exempted by §. See Tennessee Code 12-3-201
(b) State and local governments shall allow contracts with religious organizations to provide goods and services provided through, or administered by, the departments of children’s services, health, and human services and to accept forms of disbursement under any program established on the same basis as any other nongovernmental provider without impairing the religious character of these organizations, and without diminishing the religious freedom of beneficiaries of assistance funded under these programs. The programs shall be implemented consistent with the first Amendment of the United States Constitution. State and local governments shall not discriminate against an organization that is, or applies to be, a contractor to provide assistance or that accepts forms of disbursement on the basis that the organization has a religious character.(c) A religious organization with a contract described in this section shall retain its independence from federal, state and local governments, including the religious organization’s control over the definition, development, practice and expression of its religious beliefs. State and local governments shall not require a religious organization to alter its form of internal governance or to remove religious art, icons, scripture or other symbols in order to be eligible to contract to provide assistance or to accept grants or other forms of disbursement funded under any program or public contract.(d) If a person, who applies for or receives goods, services or disbursements, objects to the religious character of the organization or institution from which the person receives, or would receive, assistance funded under any program, the state or local government shall provide the person, within a reasonable period of time after the date of the objection, with assistance from an alternative provider that is accessible to the person if an alternative provider is available and the value of which is not less than the value of assistance that the person would have received from the religious organization. Organizations shall provide notice to people receiving assistance of the right to object pursuant to this subsection (d).(e) A religious organization’s exemption provided under § 702 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. § 2000e-1(a)), regarding employment practices is not affected by its participation in, or receipt of, moneys from programs described in this section. Nothing in this section allows religious organizations to discriminate in employment practices on the basis of race, age, color, sex or national origin.(f) Except as otherwise provided by law, a religious organization shall not discriminate against a person in regard to rendering assistance funded under any program described in this section on the basis of religion, a religious belief or refusal to participate in a religious practice, or on the basis of race, age, color, sex or national origin.(g) Except as provided in subsection (h), any religious organization that contracts to provide goods, services or assistance funded under any program is subject to audit by the comptroller of the treasury, and is required to comply with the same rules and laws as other contractors to account in accordance with generally accepted auditing principles for the use of the moneys provided under the program.(h) If a religious organization segregates public moneys provided under these programs into separate accounts, only the programs funded by financial assistance provided with these moneys are subject to audit by the comptroller of the treasury.(i) Appeals from the decisions of the head of a state agency, board or commission may be made to the commissioner of finance and administration in accordance with the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5.(j) No moneys provided directly to institutions or organizations to provide services and administer programs under this section may be spent for sectarian worship, instruction or proselytization. This subsection (j) does not apply to the contracting for the services of chaplains by state and local governments.(k) For the purposes of this section, “state and local governments” means state agencies, boards and commissions and political subdivisions of this state.(l) No funds provided by any state or local government for goods and services to religious organizations shall supplant present funding of programs provided by such groups but shall be a supplement to the activities rendered by these groups.
