Also known as: generally applicable · general application
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A law or policy that applies uniformly to all persons or conduct within its scope without singling out religious practices for special burdens or granting officials discretionary authority to create exemptions. Such laws trigger only rational-basis review under the Free Exercise Clause when they incidentally burden religion.
The city council enacts an ordinance that prohibits the killing of animals for food except in licensed slaughterhouses. Glenn Gross, a Santeria priest, is prosecuted for performing a religious ritual that requires animal sacrifice outside a licensed facility. The ordinance is not generally applicable because its text and history show it was designed to suppress the Santeria practice while permitting other forms of animal killing.
Gary Goldman is fired after his employer discovers he used peyote during a Native American Church ceremony. The state denies unemployment benefits under a criminal prohibition that applies to all persons. The prohibition is generally applicable because it regulates conduct for everyone without regard to religious motivation and therefore does not violate the Free Exercise Clause.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Gabriella Gomez runs a religious foster agency that declines to certify same-sex couples on faith-based grounds. City officials deny the agency a contract because its policy violates an anti-discrimination rule, yet the same officials retain authority to grant individualized exemptions for secular reasons. The rule is not generally applicable because the discretionary exemption mechanism allows officials to favor some interests over religious ones.
Gavin Grant, a public high-school football coach, is placed on leave after he quietly kneels in private prayer at midfield after games. The school district enforces a policy against any visible religious expression by employees. The policy is not generally applicable because it singles out religious conduct for prohibition while permitting other forms of personal expression.
Congress enacts a statute that applies a general immigration rule to all aliens but then passes a resolution singling out one individual for deportation. The resolution is not a rule of general applicability because it decides the rights of a specific person rather than prescribing a uniform standard for the class.
A federal statute bars corporations from using general treasury funds for electioneering communications while permitting individuals and some other entities to spend freely. The restriction is not generally applicable because it singles out corporations for differential treatment rather than regulating all speakers under the same rules.
A law fails to qualify as generally applicable when it contains discretionary exemption mechanisms that allow officials to grant exceptions for secular reasons or when its text or history reveals an intent to target religious conduct. In such cases strict scrutiny applies.
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Yes. A facially neutral criminal law that applies to everyone and does not target religion remains generally applicable even if it incidentally prevents a religious practice. No constitutional exemption is required.
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The existence of even one secular exemption can render a policy not generally applicable if it creates a mechanism for individualized discretionary decisions that could favor nonreligious interests over religious ones.
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Strict scrutiny applies. The government must demonstrate that the law serves a compelling interest and is narrowly tailored to achieve that interest.
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…(1977), Reed v. Reed , 404 U. S. 71 (1971), and Royster Guano Co. v. Virginia , 253 U. S. 412, 415 (1920). Rather, it is the generally applicable standard of McGowan v. Maryland , 366 U. S. 420, 425 (1961): "The constitutional safeguard [of the Equal Protection Clause] is offended only if the classification rests on grounds…