[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 796 Engrossed in House (EH)]

103d CONGRESS

  1st Session

                               H. R. 796

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 To amend title 18, United States Code, to assure freedom of access to 
                         reproductive services.






103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 796

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
 To amend title 18, United States Code, to assure freedom of access to 
                         reproductive services.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION l. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Freedom of Access to Clinic 
Entrances Act of 1993''.

SEC. 2. FREEDOM OF ACCESS TO REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH SERVICES.

    Chapter 13 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at 
the end the following:
``Sec. 248. Blocking access to reproductive health services
    ``(a) Prohibited Activities.--Whoever--
            ``(1) by force, threat of force, or physical obstruction, 
        intentionally injures, intimidates, or interferes with any 
        person, or attempts to do so, because that person or any other 
        person or class of persons is obtaining or providing 
        reproductive health services; or
            ``(2) intentionally damages or destroys the property of a 
        facility, or attempts to do so, because that facility provides 
        reproductive health services;
shall be punished as provided in subsection (b) of this section and 
also be subject to the civil remedy provided in subsection (c) of this 
section, except that a parent or legal guardian of a minor shall not be 
subject to any penalties or civil remedies under this section for such 
activities insofar as they are directed exclusively at that minor.
    ``(b) Penalties.--Whoever violates subsection (a) of this section 
shall--
            ``(1) in the case of a first offense, be fined under this 
        title or imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both; and
            ``(2) in the case of a second or subsequent offense after a 
        prior conviction under this section, be fined under this title 
        or imprisoned not more than 3 years, or both;
except that, if bodily injury results, the length of imprisonment shall 
be not more than 10 years, and if death results, it shall be for any 
term of years or for life.
    ``(c) Civil Actions.--
            ``(1) Right of action generally.--Any person who is 
        aggrieved by a violation of subsection (a) of this section may 
        in a civil action obtain relief under this subsection.
            ``(2) Action by attorney general.--If the Attorney General 
        has reasonable cause to believe that any person, or group of 
        persons, is aggrieved by a violation of subsection (a) of this 
        section, the Attorney General may in a civil action obtain 
        relief under this subsection.
            ``(3) Actions by state attorneys general.--If an attorney 
        general of a State has reasonable cause to believe that any 
        person or group of persons is aggrieved by a violation of 
        subsection (a) of this section, that attorney general may in a 
        civil action obtain relief under this subsection.
            ``(4) Relief.--In any action under this subsection, the 
        court may award any appropriate relief, including temporary, 
        preliminary or permanent injunctive relief, and compensatory 
        and punitive damages for each person aggrieved by the 
        violation. With respect to compensatory damages, the aggrieved 
        person may elect, at any time before the rendering of final 
        judgment, to recover, in lieu of actual damages, an award of 
        statutory damages in the amount of $5,000 per violation. The 
        court may award to the prevailing party, other than the United 
        States, reasonable fees for attorneys and expert witnesses.
    ``(d) Rules of Construction.--(1) Nothing in this section shall be 
construed to prohibit any expressive conduct (including peaceful 
picketing or other peaceful demonstration) protected from legal 
prohibition by the first article of amendment to the Constitution.
    ``(2) Nothing in this section shall be construed to interfere with 
the authority of States to enforce State or local laws regulating the 
provision of reproductive health services.
    ``(e) Non-Preemption.--Congress does not intend this section to 
provide the exclusive remedies with respect to the conduct prohibited 
by it, nor to preempt the legislation of the States that may provide 
such remedies.
    ``(f) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following 
definitions apply:
            ``(1) Reproductive health services.--The term `reproductive 
        health services' means reproductive health services provided in 
        a hospital, clinic, physician's office, or other facility, and 
        includes medical, surgical, counselling or referral services 
        relating to the human reproductive system.
            ``(2) Facility.--The term `facility' includes the building 
        or structure in which the facility is located.
            ``(3) Physical obstruction.--The term `physical 
        obstruction' means rendering impassable ingress to or egress 
        from a facility that provides reproductive health services, or 
        rendering passage to or from such facility unreasonably 
        difficult.
            ``(4) State.--The term `State' includes a State of the 
        United States, the District of Columbia, and any commonwealth, 
        territory, or possession of the United States.
            ``(5) Intimidate.--The term `intimidate' means to place a 
        person in reasonable apprehension of bodily harm to himself or 
        herself or to another.''.

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act takes effect on the date of the enactment of this Act, and 
shall apply only with respect to conduct occurring on or after such 
date.

SEC. 4. CLERICAL AMENDMENT.

    The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 13 of title 18, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new 
item:

``248. Blocking access to reproductive health services.''.

            Passed the House of Representatives November 18, 1993.

            Attest:






                                                                 Clerk.