U.S. Department
of Justice
United States v Borough of Kingston (M.D. Pa.)
On February 6, 2026, the District Court entered a consent order to resolve the claims in United States v. Borough of Kingston (M.D. Pa.). The complaint, filed February 4, 2026, alleges that the Borough of Kingston (“Kingston”) violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) by enacting and enforcing a 2023 zoning ordinance that treats religious land uses worse than comparable secular uses and unreasonably limit religious land use. Kingston’s zoning ordinance requires that places of worship obtain discretionary special exception use permits, while comparable nonreligious assembly uses are permitted as of right. The ordinance also restricts places of worship to one-acre or more parcels, while no acreage restriction is placed on comparable nonreligious assembly uses. As a result of these restrictions, Kingston’s Orthodox Jewish Chabad community has struggled to find sufficient suitable places for prayer, religious study, religious schools, and mikvahs (ritual baths). The consent order requires Kingston to revise its zoning ordinance to allow places of worship and religious schools as a permitted use in commercial districts and as a special use in residential districts; eliminate the acreage requirements for places of worship and religious schools; and treat places of worship on comparable terms to nonreligious places of assembly with respect to other zoning concerns like parking and landscaping. The consent order also requires Kingston to train its officials and employees on RLUIPA’s requirements, establish a procedure for receiving and resolving RLUIPA complaints, and undertake other injunctive relief.