Right to Worship Act

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Introduced

In Committee

Passed One Chamber

Passed Both Chambers

Signed into Law

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Protects people attending religious services by banning disruptions near houses of worship.

This bill would make it illegal to knowingly disrupt or block access to scheduled religious services within 100 feet of a house of worship entryway, if the conduct substantially affects interstate commerce. It would also create federal fines and allow individuals and government lawyers to take civil action against violators.

What Would Change

Currently, there is no specific federal law that broadly prohibits and provides civil penalties for knowingly disrupting or impeding access to scheduled religious services at houses of worship. This bill would make it unlawful to knowingly disrupt or impede access to scheduled religious services within 100 feet of a house of worship entryway, if the conduct substantially affects interstate commerce. It would establish civil fines starting at $2,500 for a first offense and allow individuals and government lawyers to seek court orders or damages for violations.

Key Provisions

Bans knowingly disrupting or blocking access to scheduled religious services within 100 feet of a house of worship entryway, if the conduct substantially affects interstate commerce, starting one hour before and ending one hour after the service.
Lets individuals who are harmed sue in federal court for court orders to stop the disruption, money for damages, or a set payment of $5,000 per violation.
Lets the U.S. Attorney General sue to stop violations, get money for affected people, or seek a $5,000 civil penalty per violation to protect the public.
Lets state attorneys general sue on behalf of their state's residents for similar relief.
Sets civil fines for violations: $2,500 for a first offense, $5,000 for a second, and $10,000 for a third or later offense.

View on Congress.gov

S 5289 · 119th Congress · AI Summary by gemini-2.5-flash · 10/10

Right to Worship Act

What Would Change

Key Provisions

Lobbying Activity