Feds target religious bias in zoning fights
Jennifer Chambers, The Detroit News
12:20 a.m. EDT May 25, 2016
Federal officials are cracking down on local communities that use zoning laws to discriminate against religious groups, particularly Muslims.
The most recent eight lawsuits filed by the U.S. Department of Justice alleging violations of federal religious land use law have involved either a mosque or an Islamic school, including one local case in Washtenaw County’s Pittsfield Township.
The law — Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act — sets a high bar for any government action that would impose zoning or other restrictions on a religious institution. The law requires any such action must serve a “compelling government interest” while also being “the least restrictive means” of furthering that interest.
U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade and the justice department filed a lawsuit against Pittsfield Township in October for failing to approve a zoning request for an Islamic school and accused the township of violating the religious land use act.
http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2016/05/24/feds-target-religious-bias-zoning-fights/84881958/
