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State Sen. ‘ashamed’ of his RFRA vote

INDIANAPOLIS (WLFI) – In a candid conversation about the last legislative session, State Sen. Ron Alting says he’s ashamed of his vote for the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

Alting spoke to WISH-TV’s sister station WLFI Thursday morning about what he called an intense and surprising session. He says he’s glad to put it behind him, and he’s motivated to make sure Indiana gets its good image back.

To accomplish this, Alting wants to make gays and lesbians a protected class in the Indiana constitution. He says RFRA will be fresh in his mind when he returns to Indianapolis next year.

“I regret that vote tremendously,” Alting said. “In the 20 years I’ve been an elected official, there’s not a vote that I am more ashamed of and has haunted me quite honestly.”

Legislators stopped short of making LGBT Hoosiers a protected class this year. Instead, they put in new language to RFRA to ensure it was not discriminatory.

Alting says the RFRA debate took away time from working on the budget and powdered alcohol bills.