Public Corruption Prosecution Improvements Act
Latest action · Jul 28, 2011 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 119.
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.
- IntroducedFeb 17, 2011
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Public Corruption Prosecution Improvements Act - Amends the federal criminal code to revise and expand prohibitions against bribery, theft of public money, and other public corruption offenses.
(Sec. 2) Establishes a six-year limitation period for the prosecution of public corruption crimes involving bribery, extortion, theft of government property, mail fraud, and racketeering.
(Sec. 3) Expands mail and wire fraud statutes to cover offenses involving any other thing of value (e.g., intangible rights and licenses).
(Sec. 4) Modifies general venue rules for criminal prosecutions to allow prosecutions in any district in which an act in furtherance of an offense is committed.
(Sec. 5) Reduces from $5,000 to $1,000 the threshold amount for theft or bribery involving federally-assisted programs and increases the maximum prison term for such offenses from 10 to 20 years.
(Sec. 6) Increases the maximum term of imprisonment for theft and embezzlement of federal money, property, or records from 10 to 20 years.
(Sec. 7) Increases the maximum term of imprisonment for specified offenses involving bribery of public officials and witnesses from 15 to 20 years and from 2 to 5 years.
(Sec. 8) Increases to 10 years the maximum term of imprisonment for: (1) solicitation by federal officers and employees of political contributions from other federal officers and employees, (2) promise of employment made possible by an act of Congress for political activity, (3) deprivation of such employment for political activity, (4) intimidation to secure political contributions, (5) solicitation and acceptance of contributions in federal offices, and (6) coercion of political activity by federal employees.
(Sec. 9) Applies the prohibition against embezzlement or theft of federal money or property to government officials and employees of the District of Columbia.
(Sec. 10) Includes as predicates for racketeering prosecutions and wiretaps: (1) embezzlement or theft of government money, property, or records; (2) theft or bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds; and (3) major fraud against the United States.
(Sec. 12) Modifies elements relating to the crime of bribery of public officials and witnesses to: (1) prohibit public officials from accepting anything of value, other than what is permitted by rule or regulation, for or because of the official's or person's official position; (2) expand the definition of "official act" to include any conduct that falls within the range of official duty of a public official; and (3) include a course of conduct involving multiple gifts, offers or promises designed to influence a public official.
(Sec. 15) Expands the types of perjury and obstruction of justice offenses for which venue lies in the district in which the official proceeding was intended to be affected or in which the conduct constituting the alleged offense occurred.
(Sec. 16) Directs the United States Sentencing Commission to review and amend its guidelines and policy statements relating to public corruption offenses to reflect the intent of Congress that penalties for such offenses be increased.
(Sec. 17) Amends the federal judicial code to permit the disclosure of information regarding a potential criminal offense by a judge to the Department of Justice (DOJ), a federal, state, or local grand jury, or federal, state, or local law enforcement agents.
(Sec. 18) Amends the federal criminal code to include in the definition of the term "scheme or artifice to defraud" a scheme or artifice by a public official to engage in undisclosed self-dealing.
(Sec. 19) Allows the Deputy Attorney General, Assistant Attorney General, or Attorney General (in addition to the U.S. Attorney) to certify to the district court that an appeal from a district court's decision suppressing or excluding evidence or requiring the return of seized property in a criminal proceeding is not taken for the purpose of delay and that the evidence is a substantial proof of a material fact in the proceeding.
Cosponsors 6
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Feb 17, 2011 to Jul 28, 2011; 1 is an original cosponsor, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-TX | John Cornyn | Original | Feb 17, 2011 |
| R-IL | Mark Kirk | Jul 20, 2011 | |
| D-RI | Sheldon Whitehouse | Jul 21, 2011 | |
| D-MN | Amy Klobuchar | Jul 25, 2011 | |
| D-CA | Dianne Feinstein | Jul 28, 2011 | |
| D-CT | Richard Blumenthal | Jul 28, 2011 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Judiciary Committee | Referred Feb 17, 2011Markup Jul 28, 2011Reported Jul 28, 2011 |
Actions 6
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Jul 28, 2011Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
- Jul 28, 2011Committee on the Judiciary. Reported by Senator Leahy with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.
- Jul 28, 2011Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 119.
- Feb 17, 2011Introduced in Senate
- Feb 17, 2011Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S904-905)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | Debate and remarks S904Text printed S905 | Patrick J. Leahy D-VT (text) | Feb 17, 2011 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- Sep 16, 2011S. 401, Public Corruption Prosecution Improvements ActCost estimate for the bill as reported by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on July 28, 2011
CRS reports 2
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 2
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| R42015 | Prosecution of Public Corruption: An Abridged Overview of Amendments Under H.R. 2572 and S. 2038 | Report | Apr 11, 2012 |
| R42016 | Prosecution of Public Corruption: An Overview of Amendments Under H.R. 2572 and S. 2038 | Report | Apr 11, 2012 |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 1793 | Clean Up Government Act of 2011 | Related bill | May 23, 2011 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to help Federal prosecutors and investigators combat public corruption by strengthening and clarifying the law.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Public Corruption Prosecution Improvements Act
- Short Titles as Reported to Senate
- Public Corruption Prosecution Improvements Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement.
- Administrative law and regulatory procedures
- Crime and Law Enforcement
- Crimes against property
- Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
- Criminal procedure and sentencing
- Department of Justice
- District of Columbia
- Elections, voting, political campaign regulation
- Executive agency funding and structure
- Fraud offenses and financial crimes
- Government ethics and transparency, public corruption
- Organized crime
- U.S. Sentencing Commission
Text 2
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jul 28, 2011Reported to Senate
- Feb 17, 2011Introduced in Senate
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.
