The Stopping Tax Offenders and Prosecuting Identity Theft Act of 2013 or the STOP Identity Theft Act of 2013 () is a bill that would increase the penalties on identity thieves in the United States and change the definition of identity theft to include businesses and organizations instead of just individuals.
The bill was introduced into the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
during the
113th United States Congress
The 113th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, from January 3, 2013, to January 3, 2015, during the fifth and sixth years of Presidency of Barack Obama, Barack Obama's presiden ...
.
Background
As of 2013,
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
was the U.S. state that "leads the nation when it comes to federal tax return identity theft." In 2011, the
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory ta ...
"found 938,664 tax returns involving identity theft and $6.5 billion in fraudulent refunds."
In 2012, the House voted in a
voice vote
In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by responding vo ...
to pass a previous version of this bill, the Stopping Tax Offenders and Prosecuting Identity Theft Act of 2012 (), but the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
never voted on the bill.
Provisions of the bill
''This summary is based largely on the summary provided by the
Congressional Research Service
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is a public policy research institute of the United States Congress. Operating within the Library of Congress, it works primarily and directly for members of Congress and their committees and staff on a c ...
, a
public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work
A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...
source.''
The Stopping Tax Offenders and Prosecuting Identity Theft Act of 2013 or the STOP Identity Theft Act of 2013 would call for the
United States Attorney General
The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...
to: (1) make use of all existing resources of the
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...
(DOJ), including task forces, to bring more perpetrators of
tax return
A tax return is the completion of documentation that calculates an entity or individual's income earned and the amount of taxes to be paid to the government or government organizations or, potentially, back to the taxpayer.
Taxation is one of ...
identity theft
Identity theft occurs when someone uses another person's personal identifying information, like their name, identifying number, or credit card number, without their permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. The term ''identity theft'' was co ...
to justice; and (2) take into account the need to concentrate efforts in areas of the country where the crime is most frequently reported, to coordinate with state and local authorities to prosecute and prevent such crime, and to protect vulnerable groups from becoming victims or otherwise being used in the offense.
The bill would amend the federal criminal code to: (1) include organizations as victims for purposes of prohibitions against identity theft or aggravated identity theft, and (2) subject an identity theft offense committed during and in relation to tax fraud to a fine and/or up to 20 years' imprisonment.
The bill would direct the Attorney General to include in the first annual DOJ performance report made more than nine months after the date of this Act's enactment information as to progress in implementing this Act regarding: (1) information readily available to DOJ about trends in the incidence of tax return identity theft, (2) the effectiveness of statutory tools in aiding DOJ in prosecuting it, (3) recommendations on additional statutory tools that would aid in removing barriers to effective prosecution, and (4) the status of implementing DOJ's March 2010 audit report on DOJ efforts to combat identity theft.
Congressional Budget Office report
''This summary is based largely on the summary provided by the
Congressional Budget Office
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is a federal agency within the legislative branch of the United States government that provides budget and economic information to Congress.
Inspired by California's Legislative Analyst's Office that manages ...
, as ordered reported by the House Committee on the Judiciary on July 16, 2014. This is a
public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work
A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...
source.''
H.R. 744 would direct the
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...
(DOJ) to better utilize its existing resources to combat
identity theft
Identity theft occurs when someone uses another person's personal identifying information, like their name, identifying number, or credit card number, without their permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. The term ''identity theft'' was co ...
related to the filing of
tax returns
A tax return is the completion of documentation that calculates an entity or individual's income earned and the amount of taxes to be paid to the government or government organizations or, potentially, back to the taxpayer.
Taxation is one of ...
. The department currently allocates its funding to investigate and prosecute a wide range of criminal activity, including identity theft. The
Congressional Budget Office
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is a federal agency within the legislative branch of the United States government that provides budget and economic information to Congress.
Inspired by California's Legislative Analyst's Office that manages ...
(CBO) expects that the legislation could result in a reallocation of DOJ resources, but we estimate that implementing the bill would have no significant net cost to the federal government. Enacting H.R. 744 would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore,
pay-as-you-go
Pay as you go or PAYG may refer to:
Finance
* Pay-as-you-go tax, or pay-as-you-earn tax
* Pay-as-you-go pension plan
* PAYGO, the practice in the US of financing expenditures with current funds rather than borrowing
* PAUG, a structured financia ...
procedures do not apply.
H.R. 744 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA''(pdf)https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-1995-title2/html/USCODE-1995-title2-chap25.htm (text)] restricts the federal government of the United States, federal imposition of unfunded mandates on ...
and would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments.
Procedural history
The Stopping Tax Offenders and Prosecuting Identity Theft Act of 2013 was introduced into the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
United States House Committee on the Judiciary
The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, a ...
. The bill was scheduled to be voted on in the House under a
suspension of the rules
In parliamentary procedure, a suspension of the rules allows a deliberative assembly to set aside its normal rules to do something that it could not do otherwise. However, there are rules that cannot be suspended.
Explanation of use
Rules are ess ...
on September 8, 2014.
Debate and discussion
The
National Association of Counties
The National Association of Counties (NACo) is an organization that represents county governments in the United States.
List of bills in the 113th United States Congress
The bills of the 113th United States Congress list includes proposed federal laws that were introduced in the 113th United States Congress. This Congress lasted from January 3, 2013, to January 3, 2015.
The United States Congress is the bicamer ...
*
Identity theft in the United States
Identity theft involves obtaining somebody else's identifying information and using it for a criminal purpose. Most often that purpose is to commit financial fraud, such as by obtaining loans or credits in the name of the person whose identity has ...
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. The FTC shares jurisdiction ov ...
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...