Washington, D.C. - As the Iowa legislature passed a bill Tuesday to prohibit protesters at military funerals, U.S. Congressman Steve King is supporting a federal effort in Congress to the same end. In Iowa and across the nation, organized groups of war protesters use the funerals of soldiers killed in the War on Terror as a backdrop to berate the family and give them messages such as “God hates you.”

King is an original co-sponsor of the Respect for America’s Fallen Heroes Act, H.R. 5037, which would ban demonstrations 60 minutes prior to and after funerals taking place at Veterans’ National Cemeteries or Arlington National Cemetery. The bill would also enforce a 500-foot restriction on demonstrations in these locations, impose a Class A Misdemeanor for violations with financial penalties or jail time, and encourage all states to enact similar bans for state and private ceremonies.

“These hateful groups only seek to stain the integrity and the memory of our sons and daughters killed in the line of fire defending our freedoms,” said King. “We must always protect our military families in their hour of need and mourning.”

The provisions in the bill are consistent with several U.S. Supreme Court rulings, such as Frisby v. Schultz (1988), where the Court ruled that “the First Amendment permits the government to prohibit offensive speech as intrusive when the ‘captive’ audience cannot avoid the objectionable speech.”

Respect for America’s Fallen Heroes Act is supported by: American Veterans (AMVETS), Disabled American Veterans, Fleet Reserve Association, Jewish War Veterans of the USA, Military Order of the Purple Heart and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.