Source of the Right to Free Exercise of Religion

The First Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees the free exercise of religion and ensures that the federal government will comply with the non-establishment principle. The First Amendment is made applicable to state and local governments by the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution. Cantwell v. Connecticut, 310 U.S. 296 (1940). The federal constitutional guarantees provide a national minimum standard. See U.S. Const. art. VI, sec. 2. In addition, the states have their own unique constitutional provisions, applicable to both state and local governments, which guarantee free exercise of religion and non-establishment of religion. These state constitutional provisions are enforceable to the degree that they provide as much or more protection than is guaranteed under the federal constitution.