SB 5436 Washington Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Interfering with access to a place of religious worship.

Senate Bill 5436 makes it unlawful to willfully or recklessly interfere with access to or from a place of religious worship, or to disrupt religious services in Washington state. Prohibited actions include physically obstructing passage, trespassing, repeatedly contacting the place of worship, or threatening harm to its attendees or property. A violation of this act is classified as a gross misdemeanor. The bill also allows individuals or religious organizations whose access or services are disrupted to seek civil damages and injunctive relief to prevent further interference.

Issues: ✗ Criminal Justice

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Jan 2026

House Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 12, 2026 Last action Mar 12, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Substitute Bill → Engrossed Substitute Bill · 5 edits · Jan 21, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was renamed to reflect its final version and significantly narrowed the definition of who can claim to be harmed by protests. The most important change is that only people whose physical path to the church is blocked or the church owners themselves can sue; individuals claiming their religious feelings were hurt or whose access was merely 'impeded' can no longer bring a lawsuit. Additionally, the maximum daily fine for churches was reduced from $5,000 to $1,500.

Scope change

The bill's scope of civil liability was narrowed to exclude individuals claiming disruption to their religious exercise without physical obstruction.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'aggrieved person' was changed to require physical obstruction of access, removing protections for those whose religious exercise was merely 'disrupted' or whose access was only 'impeded'.

The definition of 'physically obstruct' was added to clarify that it means making entry or exit impassable or unreasonably difficult.

ENFORCEMENT

The maximum civil penalty for churches was reduced from $5,000 to $1,500 per day of prohibited conduct.

TECHNICAL

The bill title was updated from 'Substitute' to 'Engrossed Substitute' to indicate it has passed all legislative stages.

REQUIREMENT

The list of prohibited actions was reorganized from a numbered list to an alphabetical list within the main section.

Floor votes · Senate Jan 21, 2026

How they voted

51–0

Passed

Total votes 51

Jan 21, 2026

D Democratic31

31 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican20

20 Yea

100% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 25, 2026

Committee

Referred to Rules 2 Review.

lower

Feb 24, 2026

Lower · Passed

Minority; do not pass.

lower

Feb 24, 2026

Lower · Passed

CS - Majority; do pass with amendment(s).

lower

Feb 24, 2026

Lower · Passed

Executive action taken in the House Committee on Community Safety at 4:00 PM.

lower

Feb 19, 2026

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Community Safety at 8:00 AM.

lower

Jan 21, 2026

Upper · Passed

Floor amendment(s) adopted.

upper

Jan 12, 2026

Introduced

By resolution, reintroduced and retained in present status.

upper

Mar 31, 2025

Lower · Passed

Executive session scheduled, but no action was taken in the House Committee on Community Safety at 1:30 PM.

lower

Mar 26, 2025

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Community Safety at 4:00 PM.

lower

Feb 13, 2025

Upper · Passed

Executive action taken in the Senate Committee on Law & Justice at 10:30 AM.

upper

Feb 6, 2025

Upper · Passed

Executive session scheduled, but no action was taken in the Senate Committee on Law & Justice at 10:30 AM.

upper

Feb 4, 2025

Upper · Passed

Public hearing in the Senate Committee on Law & Justice at 8:00 AM.

upper

1 primary · 10 co-sponsors