Marriage Religious Exemptions
Targeted exemptions provide a blanket exemption, or license to discriminate, to anyone operating in a specific area, such as the provision of marriage-related services. The person or organization does not need to seek out this exemption as with RFRAs; it is a blanket license to discriminate. This map shows two types of targeted, marriage-related exemptions. The first type allows private businesses to deny marriage-related services (such as photography, floral, web design or other services) to LGBTQ people and others, if doing so conflicts with their religious beliefs. The second type applies to public officials and permits state and local government employees and officials to decline to issue marriage licenses or marry couples of whose marriage they disapprove, despite it being part of the job description to provide these marriage services.
*Note: In 2015, the Kansas governor issued an executive order allowing religiously-owned organizations to refuse to provide marriage-related services. Because this does not apply to private businesses generally, it is not included in the map above.
*Note: In October 2025, the Texas Supreme Court issued a rule change clarifying that judges cannot be compelled to perform marriage ceremonies if it conflicts with their “sincerely held religious beliefs.” Because this does not apply to all public officials, it is not included in the map above.
Recommended citation:
Movement Advancement Project. 2026. “Equality Maps: Religious Exemption Laws.” www.mapresearch.org/equality-map/religious-exemptions/#marriage. Data as of June 12, 2026.
Percent of LGBTQ Population Covered by Laws
*Note: These percentages reflect estimates of the LGBTQ adult population (ages 18+) living in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Estimates of the LGBTQ population in the five inhabited U.S. territories are not available, and so cannot be reflected here. Population data are from UCLA’s The Williams Institute.
