Bill
Number: S.B. 1567
Barto
Floor Amendment
Reference
to: HEALTH AND HUMAN
SERVICES Committee amendment
Amendment
drafted by: Leg Council
FLOOR
AMENDMENT EXPLANATION
1. Removes the prohibition on private
employers from requiring any full-time,
part-time or contract employee to be vaccinated
for COVID-19 without providing an exemption for religious beliefs.
2. Reinserts existing statute requiring
employers to accommodate an employee's sincerely held religious beliefs that
prevent the employee from receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, unless the
accommodation would cause an undue burden or more than de minimus cost to the
employer.
3. Stipulates that health care institutions
are only required to provide vaccination exemptions on religious grounds to the
extent required under federal law.
4. Removes the ability for an employee to
bring action against an employer in court and claim damages for violations of
the exemption requirement.
5. Removes penalties for health care
institutions for violation of the exemption requirement.
6. Removes the establishment of the Health
Care Professionals Religious Exemption Fund and the Health Care Professionals
Religious Exemption Committee.
7. Specifies that sincerely held
religious beliefs includes sincerely held moral or ethical beliefs.
Page 1,
strike lines 2 through 13, insert:
"Section 1. Section 23-206, Arizona Revised Statutes,
is amended to read:
START_STATUTE23-206. Employers;
accommodations required; COVID-19 vaccination; religious exemption; form;
definitions
A. If an employer receives notice
from an employee that the employee's sincerely held religious beliefs,
practices or observances prevent the employee from taking the COVID-19
vaccination, the employer shall provide a reasonable accommodation unless the
accommodation would pose an undue hardship and more than a de minimus cost to
the operation of the employer's business."END_STATUTE
Renumber to
conform
Lines 15 and
16, strike ", moral or ethical"
Page 2, line
4, strike "belief" insert "beliefs"
Line 9,
after "employee's" insert "sincerely
held"
Strike lines
22 through 31
Reletter to
conform
Page 3, line
1, strike the comma insert ":
1."
Line 2,
strike "1." insert "(a)"
Line 3,
strike "2." insert "(b)"
Line 5,
strike "3." insert "(c)"
Between
lines 6 and 7, insert:
"2. "Sincerely held religious beliefs" includes a
sincerely held moral or ethical belief."
Line 8,
strike "sections" insert "section"; strike "and
36-425.10"
Page 3, line
10, strike "civil penalties;"
Line 16, after
the period insert "A health care institution is required to
apply the religious exemption prescribed in section 23-206 only to the
extent required under federal law."
Line 28,
strike "If the health care"
Strike lines
29 through 32
Page 4,
strike lines 1 through 9
Reletter to
conform
Strike lines
18 through 32
Strike page
5
Page 6,
strike lines 1 through 4
Amend title to conform