RLUIPA.org
Michigan Court Finds Town Violated RLUIPA
Today, a federal district court ruled that a zoning ordinance in Mt. Morris, Michigan could not be applied to prohibit New Life Ministries from holding “religious services” in a zone where secular assemblies, such as “private clubs, civic and fraternal organizations, lodge halls, theaters, assembly halls, and public and private educational facilities and institutions,” are allowed. The court found, on New Life’s motion of summary judgment, that this ordinance violated RLUIPA’s equal terms provision, which states that “No government shall impose or implement a land use regulation in a manner that treats a religious assembly or institution on less than equal terms with a nonreligious assembly or institution.”
Read the full opinion here.