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Small Alaskan County Stumped Over Invocation Rule

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A small county south of Anchorage, Alaska, is battling over who can deliver invocations before assembly meetings -- changing the rules at least six times in only a year. 

The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly previously had a first-come, first-serve process in place for their invocation. But after having one meeting opened by a member of the Satanic Temple and another opened by an atheist, the Assembly changed their rules to include religious restrictions.

However, both The American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska and the Freedom from Religion Foundation called the move "unconstitutional." Fearing a lawsuit,  the Assembly again voted in November to go back to their previous policy of first-come, first-serve.

"I think when the mayor vetoed the policy the first time around he was definitely animated by the constitutional concerns we had raised," the Homer Tribune quoted Joshua Decker, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska. "I think our constitutional concerns resonated with a lot of them. We're happy that they listened."

In the meantime, Assembly member Blaine Gilman, former president of the body, asked for reconsideration of the amendment at the next meeting. That means the current religious restrictions stay in place for now.

"I think I have a right, as an elected official, because I'm Christian, I'm Catholic, all my decisions stem from my core belief, and I think I have a right to have people give an invocation and a prayer," Gilman said at an Assembly meeting in October.

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About The Author

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Caitlin
Burke

Caitlin Burke serves as National Security Correspondent and a general assignment reporter for CBN News. She has also hosted the CBN News original podcast, The Daily Rundown. Some of Caitlin’s recent stories have focused on the national security threat posed by China, America’s military strength, and vulnerabilities in the U.S. power grid. She joined CBN News in July 2010, and over the course of her career, she has had the opportunity to cover stories both domestically and abroad. Caitlin began her news career working as a production assistant in Richmond, Virginia, for the NBC affiliate WWBT