Lawmakers from Florida and North Carolina are teaming up on a strict new bill. Their goal is to stop anyone who attacks people based on religion from ever entering the United States.
Senator Ashley Moody of Florida is pushing the Banning Perpetrators of Religious Persecution Act alongside North Carolina Senator Ted Budd, who introduced the bill. If passed, the law would block visas for people who plan, help with, or carry out attacks on religious freedom.
Right now, immigration rules often focus on government officials who cause trouble. This new plan goes further. It specifically targets “non-state actors”—people who aren’t part of a government—and terrorists. If someone is responsible for hurting religious groups, this bill says they are not welcome in America.
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Senator Moody believes this protects American values.
“Our great country was founded on protecting the God-given rights of man. Our nation’s Constitution guarantees it,” Moody said. “I am proud to support the Banning Perpetrators of Religious Persecution Act which prevents religious terrorists and oppressors of Christians and other religious minorities from ever entering our great nation.”
Why is this happening now?
Senator Budd pointed to violence in Nigeria as a major reason for the crackdown. In that region, terrorist groups have been kidnapping and killing Christians and other minorities.
“It is entirely unacceptable for the U.S., a nation founded on the principle of religious freedom, to allow such foreign nationals into our country,” Budd said. He noted that the bill is meant to send a “loud and clear message” to the rest of the world.
Building on Recent Rules
This proposal isn’t coming out of nowhere. It is designed to make a recent policy permanent.
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Back in December 2025, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a new rule. It allowed the State Department to deny visas to people who violate religious freedom. Budd’s new bill would turn that policy into a hard law.
The bill does three main things:
- It tells the world that attacking religious freedom makes you inadmissible to the U.S.
- It requires the government to make a public list of the people banned under this rule.
- It gives the Secretary of State the power to keep names private if releasing them would hurt foreign relations.
Several other lawmakers have signed on to support the bill. Along with Moody and Budd, the list includes Senators Marsha Blackburn, Tom Cotton, Jim Banks, John Kennedy, James Lankford, and Ted Cruz.
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