What must the government prove under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act before substantially burdening religious exercise?

Under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), the federal government is prohibited from substantially burdening a person’s exercise of religion unless it can demonstrate that the application of that burden meets two specific criteria:

• Compelling Governmental Interest: The government must prove that the burden is in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest.12
• Least Restrictive Means: The government must prove that the regulation is the least restrictive means of furthering that compelling interest.12

In Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., the Supreme Court applied this balancing test to the federal "contraceptive mandate." The Court determined that even if the government’s interest in providing free access to contraceptives were considered compelling, the government failed to demonstrate that the mandate was the least restrictive way to achieve that objective.2