HR 4238 · 118th Congress 2023–2025, ended

Kate's Law

Introduced Jun 21, 2023 Originated House Sponsor Stephanie I. Bice R-OK

Latest action · Jun 21, 2023 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

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.

IntroducedJun 21, 2023
Passed HouseNot reached
Passed SenateNot reached
To the PresidentNot reached
Became lawNot reached

Summary

Stop Illegal Reentry Act or Kate's Law

This bill increases criminal penalties for certain non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) who illegally reenter the United States after removal or exclusion.

Generally, an individual who had been denied entry into or removed from the United States and who later enters or attempts to enter the United States without prior approval from the Department of Homeland Security shall be fined, imprisoned for up to five years, or both. Current law requires a fine, imprisonment for up to two years, or both, for such an individual.

An individual who had been denied entry or removed three or more times and who later enters or attempts to enter the United States shall be fined, imprisoned for up to 10 years, or both.

An individual who was convicted of an aggravated felony or convicted at least two times before removal or departure and who subsequently enters or tries to enter the United States shall be imprisoned at least five years and for up to twenty years, and may also be fined. Currently, there is no minimum term of imprisonment for an individual who reenters after a conviction for an aggravated felony, and there are no criminal penalties for a reentering individual who had been convicted at least two times (other than the penalties for illegal reentry generally).

Cosponsors 25

Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jun 21, 2023 to Sep 23, 2024; 16 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.

Seat	Cosponsor		Signed on
R-FL	Bill Posey	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-TX	Brian Babin	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-TX	Dan Crenshaw	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-TN	David Kustoff	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-CA	Doug LaMalfa	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-CO	Doug Lamborn	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-AR	Eric A. "Rick" Crawford	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-WI	Glenn Grothman	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-SC	Jeff Duncan	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-OK	Kevin Hern	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-GA	Marjorie Taylor Greene	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-IL	Mary E. Miller	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-FL	Neal P. Dunn	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-MT	Ryan K. Zinke	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-OK	Tom Cole	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-FL	W. Gregory Steube	Original	Jun 21, 2023
R-NY	Michael Lawler		Jun 22, 2023
R-IL	Mike Bost		Jun 22, 2023
R-TX	Keith Self		Jun 23, 2023
R-SC	William R. Timmons IV		Sep 12, 2023
R-UT	Burgess Owens		Nov 6, 2023
R-FL	Byron Donalds		Nov 6, 2023
R-TX	Roger Williams		Nov 7, 2023
R-SC	Nancy Mace		Jun 11, 2024
R-CO	Greg Lopez		Sep 23, 2024

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 Jun 21, 2023

Actions 2

Everything that happened, newest first.

Jun 21, 2023Introduced in House
Jun 21, 2023Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

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.

Constitutional authority

Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuant to the following: Article 1, Section 8, Clause 18: To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof. The single subject of this legislation is: Immigration

The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 169, no. 108, June 21, 2023, page H3072.

Related bills 1

Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.

Bill	Title	Relationship	Latest action
S 2091	Kate's Law	Identical bill	Jun 21, 2023

Titles 3

Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.

Official Title as Introduced: To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to increase penalties for individuals who illegally reenter the United States after being removed, and for other purposes.
Short Title(s) as Introduced: Kate's Law; Stop Illegal Reentry Act

Subjects

Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Immigration.

Text 1

Each version as it was printed, newest first.

Jun 21, 2023Introduced in House

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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.