How to Avoid Becoming a Public Accommodation

Navigating Facility-Use Policies Without Becoming a Public Accommodation

Churches today are navigating an increasingly complex legal and cultural landscape. Many want to bless their communities by opening their buildings for gatherings, events, or ministry partnerships—but they also want to maintain their doctrinal integrity and freedom to decline uses that conflict with their beliefs.

A strong facility-use policy is one of the best tools a church can put in place. Without clear boundaries, a church can unintentionally drift into public accommodation territory, a legal category that severely limits a ministry’s ability to restrict facility use. The key is simple but essential: limit access intentionally, not casually.

At Reynolds Law Group, we guide churches through three primary facility-use frameworks. Each model protects a church’s autonomy while ensuring it does not become a public accommodation.

1. Members-Only Facility Use

This is the most restrictive—and the legally safest—approach. Under a members-only policy, the church allows use of its facilities exclusively to its own members (or members in good standing).

Key characteristics of this model:

• No rentals to outside groups

• No public advertising of the facility

• No general community access

This option works best for churches that want to keep their building closely tied to internal ministry activity. Because access is limited to a defined, pre-existing membership body, the church stays well outside the public-accommodation framework.

2. Members and Those of Like Faith and Practice

Many churches prefer to extend their building to people beyond their membership—especially those who share their theological convictions.

This model allows use by:

• Members

• Individuals or groups who affirm they belong to a church or organization of like faith and practice

It’s ideal for ministry-aligned partnerships: weddings for believers from sister churches, homeschool groups with shared doctrinal values, or faith-based nonprofits with similar mission.

To remain protected, the policy must:

• Clearly define “like faith and practice”

• Require users to provide a written affirmation of doctrinal alignment

These safeguards ensure the church is not offering the facility to the public at large but to a belief-aligned community.

3. Members, Like-Faith Partners, and Others Who Agree Not to Violate the Church’s Statement of Faith

This is the broadest model, but still legally protective when drafted well.

Under this approach, the church may permit use by:

• Members

• Like-faith partners

• Outside individuals or groups who agree in writing not to engage in activities that violate the church’s statement of faith, bylaws, or teaching

This model lets churches serve their communities generously while maintaining clear doctrinal conditions. The written agreement is the critical element—it demonstrates that access is conditional, not open to all.

The Common Thread: Restricted Use Protects Churches

Across all three models, one principle stands out: restricted access is what preserves a church’s legal protections.

A church that opens its building to anyone, for any purpose, at any time risks being treated as a public accommodation. A church that sets clear limits—based on membership, doctrinal alignment, and written conditions—retains the freedom to approve or decline facility-use requests in line with its beliefs.

With the right policy in place, your church can serve your community with generosity while staying firmly rooted in its convictions.