I wrote a post a while back on Nine Moons detailing a recent New York court decision which concluded that, under the recently reformed Bankruptcy Code, paying your creditors must take precedence over payment of tithing/charitable contributions.

As some may know, Orrin Hatch was an outspoken advocate of the 2005 Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act, which became effective law in October of 2005.

Well, there has been no shortage of unintended consequences with this new law. But apparently Hatch felt the need to draw the line on tithing. This from the Bankruptcy Information Blog on September 30th (sorry I’m a bit late with this):

Washington – Early this morning, the United States Senate unanimously approved Sen. Orrin G. Hatch’s (R-Utah) bill to protect an individual’s right to continue reasonable charitable contributions, including religious tithing, during the course of a consumer bankruptcy.

“As a rule, I do not like impromptu legislative responses to judicial decisions,” Hatch said. “But the religious practices and beliefs of individuals should not be subject to the whims of judicial interpretation. This bill ensures those who tithe can continue to live their faith while in bankruptcy.”

Co-sponsored by Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), the measure responds to a recent court ruling that above-medium income debtors in Chapter 13 cannot deduct charitable contributions from their payment plans. The August ruling by a New York bankruptcy court sidelined the clear Congressional intent behind the Religious Liberties and Charitable Donation Protection Act of 1998 and the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA). Hatch was a cosponsor of both laws, and the Hatch-Obama bill ensures that future courts allow individuals to uphold their religious obligations.

“As a whole, last year’s bankruptcy reform was – and still is – a good law,” Hatch said. “However, like many large bills, it was not perfect. As an architect of some of those reforms, I can say that Congress intended to preserve an individual’s religious freedom to tithe. I believe that Sen. Obama and I have put together a narrowly tailored bill that clarifies the law.”

Thanks Orrin!