The FAIR Act of 2026 restructures the federal civil asset forfeiture system — the legal process by which government agencies can permanently seize property alleged to be connected to a crime, even when the property owner is never charged. All civil forfeitures must now go through a federal district court; agencies can no longer complete a forfeiture without judicial involvement. The government’s standard of proof rises from a preponderance of the evidence (more likely than not) to clear and convincing evidence, and prosecutors must show the owner knew about or intentionally facilitated the property’s connection to an offense. People who cannot afford an attorney — or whose legal costs would exceed the seized property’s value — may have counsel appointed by the court. Proceeds from forfeitures are redirected to the U.S. Treasury’s General Fund rather than back to seizing agencies, removing the direct financial incentive to forfeit.
Civil Liberties
- Judicial review required before any federal civil forfeiture — nonjudicial agency forfeitures eliminated
- Government burden of proof raised to clear-and-convincing for property forfeiture claims
- Owner’s knowing consent or intent required before property can be forfeited — government bears this burden
- Legal counsel access expanded to indigent forfeiture claimants — court may appoint attorney when cost exceeds property value
- Probable cause hearing within 14 days required for structuring-related property seizures
Criminal Justice & Due Process
- Law enforcement equitable sharing eliminated — forfeiture proceeds routed to General Fund rather than seizing agencies
- Structuring offense requires knowing intent — prosecution limited to deliberate evasion of financial reporting rules
Transparency & Accountability
- DOJ required to report civil and criminal forfeiture deposits separately — distinguishes fund sources in annual reporting
Congressional Summary
Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration Act of 2026 or the FAIR Act of 2026This bill establishes more stringent requirements for the federal government with respect to civil asset forfeiture. Civil asset forfeiture generally refers to the seizure and forfeiture of property in connection with federal crimes.Specifically, the bill makes various changes to the general rules governing civil forfeiture proceedings. Among the changes, the bill generally requires the government to notify interested parties within 7 days (currently, 60 days) of a seizure,requires an indigent property owner to be represented by counsel regardless of whether the owner requests counsel,requires the government to meet a higher evidentiary standard in order to prove that seized property is connected to a crime, andexpands the factors courts must consider in determining whether a forfeiture of property is constitutionally excessive.Additionally, the bill eliminates statutory authority for equitable sharing (i.e., sharing of federally forfeited assets with state, local, or tribal law enforcement agencies that participate in law enforcement efforts resulting in a forfeiture). It directs forfeiture proceeds to be deposited into the general fund of the Treasury instead of the Department of Justice (DOJ) Assets Forfeiture Fund.The bill requires a prompt probable cause hearing following the seizure of money involved in a structuring offense (i.e., structuring currency transactions to evade currency reporting requirements).Finally, the bill requires the annual report on deposits to the DOJ Assets Forfeiture Fund to specify total deposits from each type of forfeiture.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- House
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in House
- Action Date
- 2026-02-20
- Date Added
- 2026-06-08
- Source
- Congress.gov →
Like reading a bill in plain English?
We're building an app that does this for every bill in Congress and lets you tell your reps how you want them to vote. We're a small team getting ready to launch, and we're trying to show investors that real people want this. Be one of them. Help us get it built. Leave your email and we'll tell you the moment the app is ready.