Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2009
Latest action · Jun 12, 2009 Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJan 6, 2009
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2009 - Amends the federal criminal code to make it unlawful for anyone before or during a federal election to knowingly communicate, or attempt to communicate, false election-related information about that election, with the intent to prevent another person from exercising the right to vote.
Increases from one year to five years' imprisonment the criminal penalty for intimidation of voters.
Directs the U.S. Sentencing Commission to review and, if appropriate, amend the federal sentencing guidelines and policy statements applicable to persons convicted of any offense under this Act.
Authorizes any person to report to the Attorney General false election information or intimidation of voters.
Requires the Attorney General, immediately after receiving such a report, to consider and review it and, if there is a reasonable basis to find that a violation has occurred, to: (1) undertake all effective measures necessary to provide correct information to voters affected by the false information; and (2) refer the matter to the appropriate federal and state authorities for criminal prosecution or civil action after the election.
Directs the Attorney General to study and report to Congress on the feasibility of providing such corrective information through public service announcements, the emergency alert system, or other forms of public broadcast.
Requires the Attorney General to establish a Voting Integrity Task Force to carry out the requirements of this Act with respect to any general, primary, run-off, or special election for federal office.
Cosponsors 19
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jan 6, 2009 to Mar 30, 2009; 15 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-CA | Adam B. Schiff | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-MA | Bill Delahunt | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-NY | Carolyn B. Maloney | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-MD | Chris Van Hollen | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-NJ | Donald M. Payne | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-GA | Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-NY | Jerrold Nadler | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-GA | John Lewis | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-MN | Keith Ellison | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-VA | Robert C. "Bobby" Scott | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-FL | Robert Wexler | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-TX | Sheila Jackson Lee | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-TN | Steve Cohen | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-CA | Zoe Lofgren | Original | Jan 6, 2009 |
| D-IL | Luis V. Gutierrez | Jan 8, 2009 | |
| D-VA | Rick Boucher | Jan 8, 2009 | |
| D-FL | Debbie Wasserman Schultz | Jan 14, 2009 | |
| D-NJ | Rush Holt | Mar 30, 2009 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred Jan 6, 2009 |
| Constitution and Limited Government Subcommittee | Referred Jun 12, 2009 |
Actions 4
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jun 12, 2009Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.
- Jan 7, 2009Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E27)
- Jan 6, 2009Introduced in House
- Jan 6, 2009Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Extensions | Debate and remarks E27 | John Conyers, Jr. D-MI | Jan 7, 2009 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit certain deceptive practices in Federal elections, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act of 2009
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Government Operations and Politics.
- Administrative law and regulatory procedures
- Civil actions and liability
- Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
- Criminal justice information and records
- Criminal procedure and sentencing
- Department of Justice
- Elections, voting, political campaign regulation
- Emergency communications systems
- Executive agency funding and structure
- Fraud offenses and financial crimes
- Government information and archives
- Government Operations and Politics
- Government studies and investigations
- Voting rights
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jan 6, 2009Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
