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H.R. 8353

U.S. House•In House Committee

Summary

H.R. 8353, the FAITH Act, was introduced in the House on Apr 16, 2026 by Rep. Keith Self (R) with 1 co-sponsor. It was referred to Judiciary, and last saw action on Apr 16, 2026: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Record

Text

H.R. 8353 has 1 co-sponsor.

hb8353/introduced-in-house.txt
119 HR 8353 IH: Freedom Against Imposed Theology Harms Act
 U.S. House of Representatives
 2026-04-16
 text/xml
 EN
 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
 I  119th CONGRESS  2d Session  H. R. 8353  IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES   April 16, 2026   Mr. Self  introduced the following bill; which was referred to the  Committee on the Judiciary    A BILL
To establish a prohibition on fees related to religious participation, and for other purposes.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   Freedom Against Imposed Theology Harms Act   or the   FAITH Act  .
2.
Prohibition on fees related to religious participation
(a)
In general
 Chapter 13  of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
251.
Prohibition on fees related to religious participation
(a)
Offense
Whoever knowingly imposes, assesses, collects, or attempts to impose, assess, or collect any fee, fine, surcharge, penalty, or other financial obligation from any person based on that person’s participation or membership in, or refusal to participate in or become a member of, any religious theology, denomination, or organization shall—
(1)
in the case that the fee, fine, surcharge, penalty or other financial obligation does not exceed $1,000, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both; or
(2)
in any other case, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 3 years, or both.
(b)
Prohibiting denial of goods and services
Whoever knowingly denies goods, services, access, or opportunities to a person on the basis of nonpayment of any fee prohibited under subsection (a) shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both.
(c)
Rule of construction
Nothing in this section shall be construed to restrict the ability of religious organizations and educational institutions to request or receive voluntary contributions from their members for internal purposes.
 .
(b)
Clerical amendment
The table of sections for  chapter 13  of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
251. Prohibition on fees related to religious
  participation.
  .
3.
RICO offense
Section 1961(1) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting  section 251 (relating to the prohibition on fees tied to religious participation),  after  section 224 (relating to sports bribery), .
4.
Effective date
This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take effect 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act.

Tracker

The tracker indicates the progress of this legislation as it moves through the legislative process.

  1. Introduced2026-04-16
  2. Passed House
  3. Passed Senate
  4. Conference
  5. To President
  6. Became Law

To establish a prohibition on fees related to religious participation, and for other purposes.

Sponsors

Rep. Keith Self (R) sponsors H.R. 8353, and 1 member has co-sponsored it.

Keith Self

Rep. · R–TX-3 · Sponsor

Introduced Apr 16, 2026

Clay Fuller

R–GA-14 · Co-sponsor

Joined Apr 28, 2026

Committees

H.R. 8353 went before 1 committee: Judiciary.

Judiciary
Judiciary
Referred To · Apr 16, 2026 · 2,181 Bills

Actions

H.R. 8353 has taken 2 actions since Apr 16, 2026.

ChamberAction
Apr 16, 2026
House
Introduced in House
Apr 16, 2026
House
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.Judiciary Committee

Votes

H.R. 8353 has not gone to a roll call.

Titles

H.R. 8353 goes by 4 titles, 2 of them short titles.

  • FAITH Act — Display Title
  • To establish a prohibition on fees related to religious participation, and for other purposes. — Official Title as Introduced
  • FAITH Act — Short Title(s) as Introduced
  • Freedom Against Imposed Theology Harms Act — Short Title(s) as Introduced

Classification

The Congressional Research Service files H.R. 8353 under Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues, one of its 31 policy areas.

CRS Subjects

CRS assigns every bill one policy area from its 31; H.R. 8353’s is Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues.

hr8353/policy-areas.txt
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority IssuesAgriculture and FoodAnimalsArmed Forces and National SecurityArts, Culture, ReligionCommerceCongressCrime and Law EnforcementEconomics and Public FinanceEducationEmergency ManagementEnergyEnvironmental ProtectionFamiliesFinance and Financial SectorForeign Trade and International FinanceGovernment Operations and PoliticsHealthHousing and Community DevelopmentImmigrationInternational AffairsLabor and EmploymentLawNative AmericansPublic Lands and Natural ResourcesScience, Technology, CommunicationsSocial WelfareSports and RecreationTaxationTransportation and Public WorksWater Resources Development

Constitutional authority

The clause the sponsor cites as Congress’s power to enact H.R. 8353, as entered in the Congressional Record.

[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 67 (Thursday, April 16, 2026)][House]From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]By Mr. SELF:H.R. 8353.Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuantto the following:Congress has the authority to enact this legislationpursuant to Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution,including the power to enforce protections for individualliberties implicated by fees or penalties tied to religiousparticipation.[Page H2961]

Source: congress.gov · legiscan.com