[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4247 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4247

  To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit mobile service 
providers from providing service on mobile electronic devices that have 
 been reported stolen and to require such providers to give consumers 
the ability to remotely delete data from mobile electronic devices, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 22, 2012

  Mr. Engel (for himself, Ms. Norton, and Mr. Nadler) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                                Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit mobile service 
providers from providing service on mobile electronic devices that have 
 been reported stolen and to require such providers to give consumers 
the ability to remotely delete data from mobile electronic devices, 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 ``Cell Phone Theft Prevention Act of 
2012''.

SEC. 2. STOLEN MOBILE ELECTRONIC DEVICES.

    (a) In General.--Part I of title III of the Communications Act of 
1934 (47 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

``SEC. 343. STOLEN MOBILE ELECTRONIC DEVICES.

    ``(a) Prohibition on Provision of Service.--
            ``(1) In general.--A provider of commercial mobile service 
        or commercial mobile data service may not provide service on a 
        mobile electronic device that has been reported to such 
        provider as stolen--
                    ``(A) by the person who holds the account with 
                respect to such service, if such person submits to such 
                provider a copy of a report made to a law enforcement 
                agency regarding the theft; or
                    ``(B) by another provider of commercial mobile 
                service or commercial mobile data service, in 
                accordance with paragraph (2).
            ``(2) Reporting by service providers.--A provider of 
        commercial mobile service or commercial mobile data service to 
        which a mobile electronic device is reported stolen as 
        described in paragraph (1)(A) shall inform all other providers 
        of such service--
                    ``(A) that such device has been reported stolen; 
                and
                    ``(B) of any information necessary for the 
                identification of such device.
    ``(b) Remote Deletion of Data.--A provider of commercial mobile 
service or commercial mobile data service on a mobile electronic device 
shall make available to the person who holds the account with respect 
to such service the capability of deleting from such device, from a 
remote location, all information that was placed on such device after 
its manufacture.
    ``(c) Device Standards.--A person may not manufacture in the United 
States or import into the United States for sale or resale to the 
public a mobile electronic device unless such device is--
            ``(1) equipped with a unique identifier (such as a Mobile 
        Equipment Identifier) that allows a provider of commercial 
        mobile service or commercial mobile data service to identify 
        such device for purposes of complying with subsections (a) and 
        (b); and
            ``(2) configured in such a manner that the provider of 
        commercial mobile service or commercial mobile data service on 
        the device is able to make available the remote deletion 
        capability required by subsection (b).
    ``(d) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Commercial mobile data service.--The term `commercial 
        mobile data service' has the meaning given such term in section 
        6001 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 
        2012 (Public Law 112-96).
            ``(2) Commercial mobile service.--The term `commercial 
        mobile service' has the meaning given such term in section 332.
            ``(3) Mobile electronic device.--The term `mobile 
        electronic device' means a personal electronic device on which 
        commercial mobile service or commercial mobile data service is 
        provided, except that such term does not include a device--
                    ``(A) for which the consumer purchases service by 
                paying in advance for a specified amount of calling or 
                data usage; or
                    ``(B) with respect to which the consumer does not 
                have a direct relationship with the provider of 
                commercial mobile service or commercial mobile data 
                service.''.
    (b) Report to FCC.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, each provider of commercial mobile service or 
commercial mobile data service that provides such service on a mobile 
electronic device shall submit to the Federal Communications Commission 
a report on--
            (1) the efforts such provider is making in order to be 
        prepared to comply, not later than the effective date described 
        in subsection (c)(1), with the requirements of subsections (a) 
        and (b) of section 343 of the Communications Act of 1934, as 
        added by subsection (a) of this section; and
            (2) the progress of such provider toward being prepared to 
        comply with such requirements by such date.
    (c) Effective Date.--
            (1) In general.--Such section 343 shall take effect on the 
        date that is 2 years after the date of the enactment of this 
        Act.
            (2) Devices previously manufactured or imported.--In the 
        case of a mobile electronic device that was manufactured in the 
        United States (or imported into the United States, if such 
        device was manufactured outside the United States) before the 
        date that is 2 years after the date of the enactment of this 
        Act, a provider of commercial mobile service or commercial 
        mobile data service shall only be required to comply with 
        subsections (a) and (b) of such section to the extent 
        technologically feasible.
    (d) Definitions.--In this section, a term that is defined in such 
section 343 shall have the meaning given such term in such section.
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