SCOTUS weighs carveout for Catholic preschools in Colorado funding program

The Supreme Court agreed to hear a challenge by the Archdiocese of Denver claiming Colorado’s state-funded preschool program’s nondiscrimination rule violates Catholic religious rights by barring exemptions for same-sex relationships and transgender status, arguing that the law’s neutral application is not truly neutral; Colorado and the federal government urge keeping the rule, framing it as an equal-for-all standard, while the case tests the reach of religious exemptions under Smith in a court with a conservative majority.