From Overcriminalized.com:
Table of Contents
New:
S. 3992: Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act of 2010
H.R. 6495: Robert C. Byrd Miner Safety Protection Act of 2010
Updates:
S. 3302: Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010
S. 1938: Distracted Driving Prevention Act of 2009
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S. 3992: Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act of 2010
Sponsor: Durbin (D - IL)
Official Title: A bill to authorize the cancellation of removal and adjustment of status of certain alien students who are long-term United States residents and who entered the United States as children and for other purposes.
Status:
11/30/2010: Introduced in Senate
12/1/2010: Placed on Senate calendar
12/9/2010: Motion to proceed to measure considered in Senate
12/9/2010: Motion to table Motion to proceed to measure agreed to in Senate
Commentary: This bill is a version of the DREAM Act (see also S. 729, S. 3962, and S. 3963), which would grant legal status to some illegal aliens who attend college in the United States or serve in a branch of the U.S. armed forces. Like S. 3963, S. 3992 would grant its benefits only to those persons who are under 30 years of age. Like each of these earlier iterations, S. 3992 also contains criminal penalties for false statements. The bill imposes criminal penalties on anyone who files an application for relief under the Act who "willfully or knowingly falsifies, misrepresents, or conceals a material fact or makes any false or fraudulent statement or representation" in conjunction with their application. Violations of this provision are punishable by up to 5 years imprisonment, fines in accordance with Title 18 of the U.S. Code, or both. This new criminal offense would be duplicative of, and uses substantially similar language to, the general federal "false statements" statute (18 U.S.C. § 1001).
H.R. 6495: Robert C. Byrd Miner Safety Protection Act of 2010
Sponsor: Miller (D - CA)
Official Title: A bill to improve compliance with mine safety and health laws, empower miners to raise safety concerns, prevent future mine tragedies, and for other purposes.
Status:
12/3/2010: Introduced in House
12/3/2010: Referred to House Education and Labor Committee
12/8/2010: House failed to suspend the rules and pass the bill
Commentary: Under current law, section 820(d) of Title 30, U.S. Code, currently prohibits "willfully" violating a mandatory mining health or safety standard or "knowingly" violating or refusing to comply with certain orders issued by the Secretary of Labor. This bill, like its previous iteration (H.R. 5663), would significantly lower the protectiveness of the mental state required to prove a violation of a mandatory health and safety standard from "willfully" to "knowingly." Violators are currently subject to imprisonment for up to one year, a fine of up to $250,000, or both on the first conviction, and imprisonment for up to 5 years, a fine of $500,000, or both for subsequent violations. The earliest version of H.R. 5663 would have increased the penalty for first violations to imprisonment for up to 5 years, a fine of $1,000,000, or both, and the penalty for subsequent violations to imprisonment for up to 10 years, a fine of $2,000,000, or both. Such increased penalties were stripped from later versions of H.R. 5663 and have not been included in H.R. 6495, but the weakened culpability standard is nevertheless problematic. This bill also broadens the potential for criminal liability of corporate officers in the mining context. Under 30 U.S.C. § 820(c), a director, officer, or agent of a corporate violator who "knowingly authorized, ordered, or carried out" the conduct leading to the violation is subject to prosecution to the same extent as the corporation. This bill, like H.R. 5663, goes even further in holding corporate officers criminally responsible for the knowing authorization of "any policy or practice" that leads to the violation. This is particularly problematic given that the term "knowingly" will not necessarily be interpreted by the courts to require the government to prove that the director, officer, or agent had any actual knowledge that the policy or practice he or she authorized, ordered, or carried out would lead to an unlawful violation.
S. 3302: Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010
Sponsor: Rockefeller (D - WV)
Official Title: A bill to amend Title 49, United States Code, to establish new automobile safety standards, make better motor vehicle safety information available to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the public, and for other purposes.
Status:
5/4/2010: Introduced in Senate
5/4/2010: Referred to Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee
5/19/2010: Hearing Held by Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee
6/9/2010: Mark up in the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee
6/9/2010: Ordered to be reported Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee
11/29/2010: Reported to Senate by Senate Science and Transportation Committee
11/29/2010: Placed on Senate calendar
Commentary: This bill is a response to allegations regarding sudden acceleration by Toyota automobiles and related allegations regarding Toyota's response to those claims. It includes provisions calling for the Secretary of Transportation to promulgate new safety standards. Sections 30118, 30119, and 30116 of Title 49, U.S. Code, already include provisions that require automobile manufacturers to notify the Secretary of Transportation and owners, purchasers, and dealers of vehicles of any safety defects with those vehicles, specify the form of notices and the procedures for supplying them, and call for the maintenance of certain records. The bill would increase the penalty for violating the general federal false statements statute (18 U.S.C. § 1001) by providing an additional penalty for submitting a false report required by 49 U.S.C. §§ 30118, 30119, and 30166 "with the specific intent of misleading the Secretary with respect to motor vehicle or motor vehicle equipment safety related defects." The new penalty would provide for up to 12 months of imprisonment in addition to the current penalty of imprisonment for up to 5 years, a fine as authorized in Title 18, U.S. Code, or both.
S. 1938: Distracted Driving Prevention Act of 2009
Sponsor: Rockefeller (D - WV)
Official Title: A bill to establish a program to reduce injuries and deaths caused by cell phone use and texting while driving.
Status:
10/27/2009: Introduced in Senate
10/27/2009: Referred to Senate Environment and Public Works Committee
10/29/2009: Discharged Senate Environment and Public Works Committee
10/29/2009: Referred to Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee
11/30/2010: Reported to Senate by Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee
11/30/2010: Placed on Senate calendar
Commentary: This bill, a companion to H.R. 3994, would establish a Department of Transportation grant program for States whose legislatures enact laws prohibiting the use of personal wireless communications devices, including cell phones, while driving. To qualify for such grants, the State law must establish minimum fines for first-time violations, increased fines for repeat violations, and "increased civil and criminal penalties than would otherwise apply" for accidents caused by drivers using such devices. The bill does not prescribe the precise language of the criminal offenses it would require participating States to enact. The bill also requires the Secretary of Transportation to prescribe regulations on the use of handheld devices by commercial motor vehicle drivers and school bus drivers, based on research and accident data analysis, and to prohibit the use of such devices if the Secretary determines that it "interferes with the driver's safe operation" of the vehicles. The bill also requires the Secretary of Transportation to prescribe regulations on the use of handheld devices by commercial motor vehicle drivers and school bus drivers, based on research and accident data analysis, and to prohibit the use of such devices if the Secretary determines that it "interferes with the driver's safe operation" of the vehicles.
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