MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday sided with members of an Amish group in Minnesota who are battling authorities’ efforts to force them to install sewage treatment plants and their appeal in light of the recent Supreme Court ruling on it Return case to state court for re-examination on religious freedom.
Families with the Swartzentruber Amish in southeast Minnesota are battling Fillmore County’s efforts to need sewage treatment plants. Judge Neil Gorsuch stated that they are among the most traditional Amish groups in the country. The Minnesota appeals court and trial court both sided with the county, and the state Supreme Court declined to hear the case.
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But the U.S. Supreme Court sent the case back to the Minnesota Court of Appeals with orders to unite in light of its ruling last month in favor of a Philadelphia-based Catholic care facility that says their religious views prevent them from working with it throw another look -Sex couples. While the Supreme Court order was a strong indicator of how judges think the lower court should rule, the next step is with the Minnesota court.
In 2013, Fillmore County required households to have modern wastewater treatment facilities to remove “gray water” from dishwashers, laundry, and more. The Amish filed for an exemption, saying their religion forbids this technology. Instead, they offered to use earth basins filled with wood chips to filter the water as it drained, which is allowed in some states such as Montana and Wyoming. But the county went so far as to seek a court order to evict 23 families from their homes if they refused to comply, Gorsuch wrote.
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Judge Samuel Alito wrote that Minnesota courts “manifestly misinterpreted and misapplied” the federal religious land use and institutional person law, which was also at issue in the Philadelphia case.
The law “forbids governments from violating genuine religious beliefs and practices, except as a last resort,” wrote Gorsuch, urging the Minnesota court and local authorities to resolve the dispute expeditiously.
“In this country, neither the Amish nor anyone else should have to choose between their farms and their beliefs,” he said.
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