[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 103 (Monday, July 23, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H4392-H4395]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CRIMINAL LAW TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS ACT OF 2001
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 2137) to make clerical and other technical
amendments to title 18, United States Code, and other laws relating to
crime and criminal procedure, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 2137
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 ``Criminal Law Technical
Amendments Act of 2001''.
SEC. 2. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS RELATING TO CRIMINAL LAW AND
PROCEDURE.
(a) Missing and Incorrect Words.--
(1) Correction of garbled sentence.--Section 510(c) of
title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking ``fine
of under this title'' and inserting ``fine under this
title''.
(2) Insertion of missing words.--Section 981(d) of title
18, United States Code, is amended by striking ``proceeds
from the sale of this section'' and inserting ``proceeds from
the sale of such property under this section''.
(3) Correction of incorrect word.--Sections 1425 through
1427, 1541 through 1544 and 1546(a) of title 18, United
States Code, are each amended by striking ``to facility'' and
inserting ``to facilitate''.
(4) Correcting erroneous amendatory language on executed
amendment.--Effective on the date of the enactment of Public
Law 103-322, section 60003(a)(13) of such public law is
amended by striking ``$1,000,000 or imprisonment'' and
inserting ``$1,000,000 and imprisonment''.
(5) Insertion of missing word.--Section 3286 of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by inserting ``section''
before ``2332b''.
(6) Correction of reference to short title of law.--That
section 2332d(a) of title
[[Page H4393]]
18, United States Code, which relates to financial
transactions is amended by inserting ``of 1979'' after
``Export Administration Act''.
(7) Elimination of typo.--Section 1992(b) of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by striking ``term or years''
and inserting ``term of years''.
(8) Spelling correction.--Section 2339A(a) of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by striking ``or an escape''
and inserting ``of an escape''.
(9) Section 3553.--Section 3553(e) of title 18, United
States Code, is amended by inserting ``a'' before
``minimum''.
(10) Misspelling in section 205.--Section 205(d)(1)(B) of
title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking
``groups's'' and inserting ``group's''.
(11) Conforming change and inserting missing word in
section 709.--The paragraph in section 709 of title 18,
United States Code, that begins with ``A person who'' is
amended--
(A) by striking ``A person who'' and inserting ``Whoever'';
and
(B) by inserting ``or'' after the semicolon at the end.
(12) Error in language being stricken.--Effective on the
date of its enactment, section 726(2) of the Antiterrorism
and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-132)
is amended--
(A) in subparagraphs (C) and (E), by striking ``section''
the first place it appears; and
(B) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``relating to'' the
first place it appears.
(b) Margins, Punctuation, and Similar Errors.--
(1) Margin error.--Section 1030(c)(2) of title 18, United
States Code, is amended so that the margins of subparagraph
(B) and each of its clauses, are moved 2 ems to the left.
(2) Correcting capitalization in language to be stricken.--
Effective on the date of its enactment, section 607(g)(2) of
the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 is amended by striking
``territory'' and inserting ``Territory''.
(3) Correcting paragraphing.--The material added to section
521(a) of title 18, United States Code, by section 607(q) of
the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 is amended to appear as a
paragraph indented 2 ems from the left margin.
(4) Subsection placement correction.--Section 1513 of title
18, United States Code, is amended by transferring subsection
(d) so that it appears following subsection (c).
(5) Insertion of parenthetical descriptions.--Section
2332b(g)(5)(B)(i) of title 18, United States Code, is
amended--
(A) by inserting ``(relating to certain killings in Federal
facilities)'' after ``930(c)'';
(B) by inserting ``(relating to wrecking trains)'' after
``1992''; and
(C) by striking ``2332c,''.
(6) Correction to allow for insertion of new subparagraph
and correction of erroneous indentation.--Section 1956(c)(7)
of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(A) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by moving the margin 2 ems to
the right;
(B) by striking ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (D);
(C) by striking the period at the end of subparagraph (E)
and inserting ``; or''; and
(D) in subparagraph (F), by striking ``Any'' and inserting
``any''.
(7) Correction of confusing subdivision designation.--
Section 1716 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(A) in the first undesignated paragraph, by inserting
``(j)(1)'' before ``Whoever'';
(B) in the second undesignated paragraph--
(i) by striking ``not more than $10,000'' and inserting
``under this title''; and
(ii) by inserting ``(2)'' at the beginning of that
paragraph;
(C) by inserting ``(3)'' at the beginning of the third
undesignated paragraph; and
(D) by redesignating subsection (j) as subsection (k).
(8) Punctuation correction in section 1091.--Section
1091(b)(1) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``subsection (a)(1),'' and inserting ``subsection
(a)(1)''.
(9) Punctuation correction in section 2311.--Section 2311
of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking the
period after ``carcasses thereof'' the second place that term
appears and inserting a semicolon.
(10) Syntax correction.--Section 115(b)(2) of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by striking ``, attempted
kidnapping, or conspiracy to kidnap of a person'' and
inserting ``or attempted kidnapping of, or a conspiracy to
kidnap, a person''.
(11) Correcting capitalization in section 982.--Section
982(a)(8) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``Court'' and inserting ``court''.
(12) Punctuation corrections in section 1029.--Section 1029
of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(A) in subsection (c)(1)(A)(ii), by striking ``(9),'' and
inserting ``(9)''; and
(B) in subsection (e), by adding a semicolon at the end of
paragraph (8).
(13) Corrections of connectors and punctuation in section
1030.--Section 1030 of title 18, United States Code, is
amended--
(A) by striking ``and'' at the end of subsection (c)(2)(A);
(B) by inserting ``and'' at the end of subsection
(c)(2)(B)(iii);
(C) by striking ``; and'' at the end of subsection
(c)(3)(B) and inserting a period;
(D) by striking the period at the end of subsection
(e)(4)(I) and inserting a semicolon; and
(E) by striking ``and'' at the end of subsection (e)(7).
(14) Correction of punctuation in section 1032.--Section
1032(1) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``13,'' and inserting ``13''.
(15) Correction of punctuation in section 1345.--Section
1345(a)(1) of title 18, United States Code, is amended.--
(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``, or'' and inserting
``; or''; and
(B) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period and
inserting a semicolon.
(16) Correction of punctuation in section 3612.--Section
3612(f)(2)(B) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``preceding.'' and inserting ``preceding''.
(17) Correction of indentation in controlled substances
act.--Section 402(c)(2) of the Controlled Substances Act (21
U.S.C. 842(c)(2)) is amended by moving the margin of
subparagraph (C) 2 ems to the left.
(c) Elimination of Redundancies.--
(1) Elimination of redundant provision.--Section 2516(1) of
title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(A) by striking the first paragraph (p); and
(B) by inserting ``or'' at the end of paragraph (o).
(2) Elimination of duplicate amendments.--Effective on the
date of its enactment, paragraphs (1), (2), and (4) of
section 601(b), paragraph (2) of section 601(d), paragraph
(2) of section 601(f), paragraphs (1) and (2)(A) of section
601(j), paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 601(k), subsection
(d) of section 602, paragraph (4) of section 604(b),
subsection (r) of section 605, and paragraph (2) of section
607(j) of the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 are repealed.
(3) Elimination of extra comma.--Section 1956(c)(7)(D) of
title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(A) by striking ``Code,,'' and inserting ``Code,''; and
(B) by striking ``services),,'' and inserting
``services),''.
(4) Repeal of section granting duplicative authority.--
(A) Section 3503 of title 18, United States Code, is
repealed.
(B) The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 223
of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking the
item relating to section 3503.
(5) Elimination of outmoded reference to parole.--Section
929(b) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
striking the last sentence.
(d) Correction of Outmoded Fine Amounts.--
(1) In title 18, united states code.--
(A) In section 492.--Section 492 of title 18, United States
Code, is amended by striking ``not more than $100'' and
inserting ``under this title''
(B) In section 665.--Section 665(c) of title 18, United
States Code, is amended by striking ``a fine of not more than
$5,000'' and inserting ``a fine under this title''.
(C) In sections 1924, 2075, 2113(b), and 2236.--
(i) Section 1924(a) of title 18, United States Code, is
amended by striking ``not more than $1,000,'' and inserting
``under this title''.
(ii) Sections 2075 and 2113(b) of title 18, United States
Code, are each amended by striking ``not more than $1,000''
and inserting ``under this title''.
(iii) Section 2236 of title 18, United States Code, is
amended by inserting ``under this title'' after ``warrant,
shall be fined'', and by striking ``not more than $1,000''
(D) In section 372 and 752.--Sections 372 and 752(a) of
title 18, United States Code, are each amended by striking
``not more than $5,000'' and inserting ``under this title''.
(E) In section 924(e)(1).--Section 924(e)(1) of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by striking ``not more than
$25,000'' and inserting ``under this title''.
(2) In the controlled substances act.--
(A) In section 401.--Section 401(d) of the Controlled
Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 841(d)) is amended--
(i) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and shall be fined not
more than $10,000'' and inserting ``or fined under title 18,
United States Code, or both''; and
(ii) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and shall be fined not
more than $20,000'' and inserting ``or fined under title 18,
United States Code, or both''.
(B) In section 402.--Section 402(c)(2) of the Controlled
Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 842(c)) is amended--
(i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``of not more than
$25,000'' and inserting ``under title 18, United States
Code''; and
(ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``of $50,000'' and
inserting ``under title 18, United States Code''.
(C) In section 403.--Section 403(d) of the Controlled
Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 843(d)) is amended--
(i) by striking ``of not more than $30,000'' each place
that term appears and inserting ``under title 18, United
States Code''; and
(ii) by striking ``of not more than $60,000'' each place it
appears and inserting ``under title 18, United States Code''.
(e) Cross Reference Corrections.--
(1) Section 3664.--Section 3664(o)(1)(C) of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by striking ``section
3664(d)(3)'' and inserting ``subsection (d)(5)''.
(2) Chapter 228.--Section 3592(c)(1) of title 18, United
States Code, is amended by striking ``section 36'' and
inserting ``section 37''.
(3) Correcting erroneous cross reference in controlled
substances act.--
[[Page H4394]]
Section 511(a)(10) of the Controlled Substances Act (21
U.S.C. 881(a)(10)) is amended by striking ``1822 of the Mail
Order Drug Paraphernalia Control Act'' and inserting ``422''.
(4) Correction to reflect cross reference change made by
other law.--Effective on the date of its enactment, section
601(c)(3) of the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 is amended by
striking ``247(d)'' and inserting ``247(e)''.
(5) Typographical and typeface error in table of
chapters.--The item relating to chapter 123 in the table of
chapters at the beginning of part I of title 18, United
States Code, is amended--
(A) by striking ``2271'' and inserting ``2721''; and
(B) so that the item appears in bold face type.
(6) Section 4104.--Section 4104(d) of title 18, United
States Code, is amended by striking ``section 3653 of this
title and rule 32(f) of'' and inserting ``section 3565 of
this title and the applicable provisions of''.
(7) Error in amendatory language.--Effective on the date of
its enactment, section 583 of the Foreign Operations, Export
Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1998 (111
Stat. 2436) is amended by striking ``Section 2401'' and
inserting ``Section 2441''.
(8) Error in cross reference to court rules.--The first
sentence of section 3593(c) of title 18, United States Code,
is amended by striking ``rule 32(c)'' and inserting ``rule
32''.
(9) Section 1836.--Section 1836 of title 18, United States
Code, is amended--
(A) in subsection (a), by striking ``this section'' and
inserting ``this chapter''; and
(B) in subsection (b), by striking ``this subsection'' and
inserting ``this section''.
(10) Correction of erroneous cite in chapter 119.--Section
2510(10) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``shall have'' and all that follows through ``United
States Code;'' and inserting ``has the meaning given that
term in section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934;''.
(11) Elimination of outmoded cite in section 2339a.--
Section 2339A(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended
by striking ``2332c,''.
(12) Correction of references in amendatory language.--
Effective the date of its enactment, section 115(a)(8)(B) of
Public Law 105-119 is amended.--
(A) in clause (i)--
(i) by striking ``at the end of'' and inserting
``following''; and
(ii) by striking ``paragraph'' the second place it appears
and inserting ``subsection''; and
(B) in clause (ii), by striking ``subparagraph (A)'' and
inserting ``clause (i)''.
(f) Tables of Sections Corrections.--
(1) Conforming table of sections to heading of section.--
The item relating to section 1837 in the table of sections at
the beginning of chapter 90 of title 18, United States Code,
is amended by striking ``Conduct'' and inserting
``Applicability to conduct''.
(2) Conforming heading to table of sections entry.--The
heading of section 1920 of title 18, United States Code, is
amended by striking ``employee's'' and inserting
``employees'''.
SEC. 3. ADDITIONAL TECHNICALS.
Title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in section 922(t)(1)(C), by striking ``1028(d)(1)'' and
inserting ``1028(d)'';
(2) in section 1005--
(A) in the first undesignated paragraph, by striking
``Act,,'' and inserting ``Act,''; and
(B) by inserting ``or'' at the end of the third
undesignated paragraph;
(3) in section 1071, by striking ``fine of under this
title'' and inserting ``fine under this title'';
(4) in section 1368(a), by inserting ``to'' after ``serious
bodily injury'';
(5) in section 1956(c)(7)(B)(ii), by inserting ``or'' at
the end thereof;
(6) in section 1956(c)(7)(B)(iii), by inserting a closing
parenthesis after ``1978'';
(7) in subsections (b)(1) and (c) of section 2252A, by
striking ``paragraphs'' and inserting ``paragraph''; and
(8) in section 2254(a)(3), by striking the comma before the
period at the end.
SEC. 4. REPEAL OF OUTMODED PROVISIONS.
(a) Section 14 of title 18, United States Code, and the
item relating thereto in the table of sections at the
beginning of chapter 1 of title 18, United States Code, are
repealed.
(b) Section 1261 of such title is amended--
(1) by striking ``(a) The Secretary'' and inserting ``The
Secretary''; and
(2) by striking subsection (b).
(c) Section 1821 of such title is amended by striking ``,
the Canal Zone''.
(d) Section 3183 of such title is amended by striking ``or
the Panama Canal Zone,''.
(e) Section 3241 of such title is amended by striking
``United States District Court for the Canal Zone and the''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner) and the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms.
Jackson-Lee) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr.
Sensenbrenner).
General Leave
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend
their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2137, as amended.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Wisconsin?
There was no objection.
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Madam Speaker, during the last half of the 20th century, Congress has
expanded the criminal code almost exponentially. According to a study
conducted by the Task Force on Federalization of Criminal Law of the
Criminal Section of the American Bar Association, more than 40 percent
of the Federal criminal provisions enacted since the Civil War have
been enacted since 1970. In addition to the increased responsibility
placed on Federal law enforcement agencies, this explosion of lawmaking
has resulted in the enactment of numerous technical mistakes which
litter the criminal code. This legislation corrects those mistakes.
Specifically, H.R. 2137 makes over 60 separate technical changes to
various criminal statutes by correcting missing and incorrect words,
margins, punctuation, redundancies, outmoded fine amounts, cross
references, and other technical and clerical errors.
Madam Speaker, this is not a glamorous bill. No one will issue a
press release about its passage or will make it a plank in one's
reelection. But it is important work. Correcting mistakes in the
criminal code is important to the thousands of Assistant U.S. Attorneys
and Federal law enforcement officials throughout the Nation who rely on
the accuracy of the criminal code on a daily basis. No longer will they
have to rely on an editor's footnote to guess Congress' true
intentions. Furthermore, the placement of a comma is not always
trivial. The Supreme Court has reviewed cases because of confusion over
Congress' grammatical mistakes, including the mistake in placement of a
comma.
Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the three cosponsors of this
legislation: the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Conyers), the ranking
minority member of the committee; the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith),
the chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime; and the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Scott), the ranking minority member of the Subcommittee
on Crime.
I would also like to recognize the staff of the Office of Legislative
Counsel and Law Revision Counsel who, along with majority and minority
staff, spent hours going through each minor change.
I urge Members to support this bill.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as
I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in favor of the bill, H.R. 2137, the Criminal
Law Technical Amendments Act of 2001. I am satisfied that the Criminal
Law Technical Amendments Act of 2001 is simply what its name implies, a
bill involving purely technical amendments to the Federal criminal
code.
The bill is cosponsored by the chairman of the Committee on the
Judiciary, the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner); the
ranking member, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Conyers); the chairman
of the Subcommittee on Crime, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith); and
the ranking member, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Scott). We thank
them for their work.
Committee staff for both sides of the aisle have thoroughly reviewed
the provisions of the bill in consultation with government and outside
organizations concerned about the Federal criminal code. All agree that
these are purely technical amendments which correct mistakes or
omissions in the originally enacted language to ensure the smooth
process of the criminal justice system. The amendments give the
provisions their intended language, therefore clarifying the importance
of the distinction needed to ensure justice, thus avoiding possible
confusion and misinterpretation.
Accordingly, I support the bill, and I urge my colleagues to do the
same.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
[[Page H4395]]
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my
time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Sensenbrenner) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2137 , as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of
those present have voted in the affirmative.
Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
____________________