[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1678 Introduced in House (IH)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1678

     To amend title 18, United States Code, with respect to false 
    communications about certain criminal violations, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 8, 2003

 Mr. Smith of Texas (for himself, Mr. Schiff, Mr. Brady of Texas, Mr. 
Green of Wisconsin, Mr. Keller, Mr. Oxley, Mr. Wolf, and Mr. Ferguson) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                             the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend title 18, United States Code, with respect to false 
    communications about certain criminal violations, and for other 
                               purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Anti-Hoax Terrorism Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. HOAXES AND RECOVERY COSTS.

    (a) Prohibition on Hoaxes.--Chapter 47 of title 18, United States 
Code, is amended by inserting after section 1036 the following:
``Sec. 1037. False information and hoaxes
    ``(a) Criminal Violation.--Whoever engages in any conduct, with 
intent to convey false or misleading information, under circumstances 
where such information may reasonably be believed and where such 
information concerns an activity which would constitute a violation of 
section 175, 229, 831, or 2332a, shall be fined under this title or 
imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.
    ``(b) Civil Action.--Whoever engages in any conduct, with intent to 
convey false or misleading information, under circumstances where such 
information concerns an activity which would constitute a violation of 
section 175, 229, 831, or 2332a, is liable in a civil action to any 
party incurring expenses incident to any emergency or investigative 
response to that conduct, for those expenses.
    ``(c) Reimbursement.--The court, in imposing a sentence on a 
defendant who has been convicted of an offense under subsection (a), 
shall order the defendant to reimburse any party incurring expenses 
incident to any emergency or investigative response to that conduct, 
for those expenses. A person ordered to make reimbursement under this 
subsection shall be jointly and severally liable for such expenses with 
each other person, if any, who is ordered to make reimbursement under 
this subsection for the same expenses. An order of reimbursement under 
this subsection shall, for the purposes of enforcement, be treated as a 
civil judgment.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 47 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding after 
the item for section 1036 the following:

``1037. False information and hoaxes.''.
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