A federal appeals court has ruled that Christian schools participating in Maine’s public tuition assistance program must comply with the state’s nondiscrimination laws, a decision that supporters of the schools say places them in an impossible position between receiving public benefits and adhering to their religious beliefs.
Last Thursday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit issued its decision in Crosspoint Church v. Makin, largely upholding a lower court’s refusal to block enforcement of portions of the Maine Human Rights Act (MHRA) while the case proceeds. The same appellate panel reached a nearly identical conclusion in a companion case involving St. Dominic Academy.
The lawsuit was brought by Crosspoint Church, which operates Bangor Christian School (BCS), with representation from First Liberty Institute.
Jeremy Dys, senior counsel for First Liberty, argued that the ruling permits religious belief in theory while restricting religious practice in areas governed by state law.
“Essentially what the court has said is that you can believe what you want to believe, you can talk about what you believe, but once you exercise what you believe, that’s conduct that the state of Maine can regulate,” Dys said.
At the center of the dispute are Bangor Christian School’s policies regarding employment, admissions, and standards for students and faculty. The school requires teachers to affirm its statement of faith and maintains biblical standards regarding marriage, sexuality, and gender identity.
According to the court, schools participating in Maine’s tuition assistance program are subject to provisions of the Maine Human Rights Act prohibiting discrimination based on religion, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Schools that violate those provisions may face complaints before the Maine Human Rights Commission as well as private lawsuits seeking injunctive relief or monetary damages.
Dys argued that those requirements directly conflict with the school’s religious convictions. As one example, he said the school’s policies regarding restroom and locker room access based on biological sex could expose it to legal liability if enforced against a student identifying as transgender.
“When the state of Maine presents this sort of regulation on conduct, it creates a real problem,” Dys said.
The appellate court, however, concluded that the law’s sexual orientation and gender identity provisions do not violate the Constitution under the circumstances presented in the case. It also determined that certain Bangor Christian School policies—including church-member tuition discounts and considering a prospective student’s “spiritual fit” during admissions—conflict with the state’s religious nondiscrimination requirements.
The ruling was not entirely in Maine’s favor. The court found that one section of the Maine Human Rights Act governing religious expression violated Crosspoint Church’s First Amendment free exercise rights and sent that portion of the case back to the district court with instructions to issue an injunction against enforcement of that provision.
The litigation represents the latest chapter in a years-long legal battle over Maine’s school tuition assistance program.
For decades, Maine has provided tuition assistance to families in areas without public secondary schools, allowing students to attend approved private schools. Until 2022, however, religious schools were excluded from participating in the program.
That policy was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in Carson v. Makin, where a 6-3 majority held that excluding otherwise eligible schools because of their religious character violated the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment. Parents associated with Bangor Christian School were among the plaintiffs in that case.
Before the Supreme Court issued its decision, the Maine Legislature amended state law to allow religious schools to participate while requiring them to comply with the Maine Human Rights Act’s nondiscrimination provisions. Those amendments gave rise to the current litigation.
In earlier proceedings, Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey defended the state’s position, arguing that schools receiving public tuition assistance must comply with the same nondiscrimination standards applicable to other participating institutions.
Crosspoint Church countered that conditioning access to a generally available public benefit on abandoning religious practices amounts to an unconstitutional burden on religious exercise. The lawsuit characterized the state’s requirements as a “poison pill,” arguing that religious schools are effectively forced to choose between participating in the tuition program and maintaining policies consistent with their beliefs.
In February 2024, U.S. District Judge John Woodcock rejected those arguments, concluding that the challenged provisions are neutral, generally applicable laws serving a legitimate governmental interest. The First Circuit largely agreed with that analysis while allowing one narrow religious-expression claim to proceed.
First Liberty Institute has not accepted the ruling as the final word. Dys said the legal team is evaluating whether to seek review by the full First Circuit or petition the U.S. Supreme Court directly.
“I suspect there’s going to be further action on this case,” Dys said.
He also criticized the broader implications of the appellate decision.
“We are disappointed that though the First Circuit acknowledges that religious institutions can teach what they believe, it would then refuse to allow conduct consistent with those beliefs,” Dys said. “Religious education plays a critical role in our diverse society, but Maine’s leadership will not tolerate conduct consistent with those religious beliefs. As the U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly said, punishing religious institutions for being religious is odious to our Constitution.”
