[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1746 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1746

  To amend title 18, United States Code, to prevent interference with 
        Federal disaster relief efforts, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 21, 2005

  Mr. Vitter (for himself and Mr. Kyl) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 18, United States Code, to prevent interference with 
        Federal disaster relief efforts, 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 ``Emergency Relief Personnel 
Protection Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. CREATING FEDERAL CRIME OF INTERFERING WITH FEDERAL DISASTER 
              RELIEF EFFORTS.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 65 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended by adding the following new section:
``Sec. 1370. Interference with Federal disaster relief efforts
    ``(a) Prohibited Conduct.--Whoever, during a presidentially-
declared major disaster or emergency--
            ``(1) forcibly assaults, resists, opposes, impedes, 
        intimidates, or interferes with any officer or employee of the 
        United States or of any agency in any branch of the United 
        States Government (including any member of the uniformed 
        services) while such officer or employee is engaged in or on 
        account of the performance of official duties relating to, or 
        in support of recovery from, the presidentially-declared 
        disaster or emergency, or any person assisting such an officer 
        or employee in the performance of such duties or on account of 
        that assistance; or
            ``(2) forcibly assaults, resists, opposes, impedes, 
        intimidates, or interferes with any person providing services 
        in support of disaster relief efforts and working in 
        coordination with a Federal coordinating officer appointed 
        pursuant to section 302, Public Law 98-288 (42 U.S.C. 5143),
shall, except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, be fined 
under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.
    ``(b) Enhanced Penalty.--Whoever, in the commission of and in 
relation to any act described in subsection (a) of this section, 
carries, possesses or uses a deadly or dangerous weapon or inflicts 
serious bodily injury, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned 
not more than 15 years or both, or, if the death of any person results, 
shall be punished by death or life imprisonment.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 86 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new item:

``1370. Interference with Federal disaster relief efforts.''.
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