United States 117th Congress Status: Died 1 D cosponsors

HR 4435 — Fight Notario Fraud Act of 2021

Last action — Ordered to be Reported.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. Died in session

This bill died with 117th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

Fight Notario Fraud Act of 2021 This bill prohibits certain types of fraud or misrepresentations related to immigration matters, provides for criminal penalties for such actions, and contains related provisions. Specifically, a person shall be subject to fines, imprisonment, or both, if that person knowingly executes a scheme related to immigration laws to (1) defraud another, or (2) receive anything of value from another based on false pretenses or representations. Such a person shall be subject to additional criminal penalties if that person (1) threatens to report another to federal or state authorities, (2) takes actions or makes attempts to adversely impact another's immigration status, or (3) demands or retains anything of value for services fraudulently performed or not performed. Similarly, a person shall be subject to fines, imprisonment, or both, if the person knowingly and falsely claims to be an attorney or an accredited representative in any matter arising under the immigration laws. (An accredited representative is an individual authorized by the Executive Office of Immigration Review to represent clients in certain immigration matters.) The bill provides for longer terms of imprisonment for a person who causes a cumulative loss of more than $10,000 through actions prohibited under this bill. The Department of Justice shall establish at least 15 Special U.S. Attorney positions to enforce these provisions and take other actions related to enforcement and protecting consumers from fraudulent immigration schemes.

Bill Text

Sections of law this bill changes

1 section in 1 law

From the bill's own amending language, matched to the official United States Code (current through Public Law 119-124).

Mail fraud and other fraud offenses · 18 U.S.C. ch. 63 1 section
  • § 1345 Injunctions against fraud Amends

    18 U.S.C. § 1345

    The law today

    (a) (1) If a person is— (A) violating or about to violate this chapter or section 287, 371 (insofar as such violation involves a conspiracy to defraud the United States or any agency thereof), or 1001 of this title; (B) committing or about to commit a banking law violation (as defined in section 3322(d) of this title); or (C) committing or about to commit a Federal health care offense; the Attorney General may commence a civil action in any Federal court to enjoin such violation. (2) If a person is alienating or disposing of property, or intends to alienate or dispose of property, obtained as a result of a banking law violation (as defined in section 3322(d) of this title) or a Federal health care offense or property which is traceable to such violation, the Attorney General may commence a civil action in any Federal court— (A) to enjoin such alienation or disposition of property; or (B) for a restraining order to— (i) prohibit any person from withdrawing, transferring, removing, dissipating, or disposing of any such property or property of equivalent value; and (ii) appoint a temporary receiver to administer such restraining order. (3) A permanent or temporary injunction or restraining order shall be granted without bond. (b) The court shall proceed as soon as practicable to the hearing and determination of such an action, and may, at any time before final determination, enter such a restraining order or prohibition, or take such other action, as is warranted to prevent a continuing and substantial injury to the United States or to any person or class of persons for whose protection the action is brought. A proceeding under this section is governed by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, except that, if an indictment has been returned against the respondent, discovery is governed by the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.

    5 other bills also change this section · Follow it → Official text at uscode.house.gov ↗

Also cites: 8 U.S.C. § 1101, 34 U.S.C. § 20101

How this bill changes current law

4 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill adds new provisions to title 18 U.S. Code to specifically prohibit fraud in immigration services and establishes penalties for such fraud.

  • 18 U.S.C. § 1345

    If a person is violating or about to violate this chapter or chapter 47 of this title, the Attorney General may commence a civil action in any Federal court to enjoin such violation.

    This allows the Attorney General to take civil action against violations of immigration-related fraud.

  • 18 U.S.C. § 47

    Sec. 1041. Schemes to defraud persons in any matter arising under immigration laws (a) Fraud.--Any person who knowingly executes a scheme or artifice, in connection with any matter authorized by or arising under the immigration laws, or any matter that such person claims or represents is authorized by or arises under the immigration laws to-- (1) defraud any other person; or (2) obtain or receive money or anything else of value from any other person by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both. (b) Misrepresentation.--Any person who knowingly makes a false representation that such person is an attorney or an accredited representative (as such term is defined under section 1292.1(a)(4) of title 8, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulation)) in any matter arising under the immigration laws shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both. (c) Threats and Retaliation.--Any person who violates subsection (a) and knowingly-- (1) threatens to report another person to Federal authorities or State law enforcement authorities working in conjunction with or pursuant to Federal authority; (2) acts to adversely affect another person's immigration status, perceived immigration status, or attempts to secure immigration status that-- (A) impacts or results in the removal of the person from the United States; (B) leads to the loss of immigration status; or (C) causes the person seeking to apply for an immigration benefit to lose an opportunity to apply for such an immigration benefit that would have provided immigration status and for which a person was prima facie eligible; or (3) demands or retains money or anything else of value for services fraudulently performed or not performed or withholds or threatens to withhold services promised to be performed, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both.

    This establishes new criminal penalties for various acts of fraud related to immigration services.

  • 18 U.S.C. § 47

    If any provision of this section, or the application of such a provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this section and the application of the remaining provisions of this section to any person or circumstance shall not be affected thereby.

    This ensures that if one part of the law is struck down, the rest of the provisions will remain intact.

  • 18 U.S.C. § 47

    There shall be deposited in the Crime Victims Fund established under section 1402 of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (34 U.S.C. 20101) any restitution ordered for an offense under this section if the victim of such offense cannot reasonably be located.

    This mandates that restitution from immigration fraud cases be directed to the Crime Victims Fund when victims are untraceable.

Action History

  1. Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.

  2. Ordered to be Reported.

  3. Introduced in House

  4. Introduced in House

  5. Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 546 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (546)

546 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

immigration civil-rights
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does HR 4435 do?
Fight Notario Fraud Act of 2021 This bill prohibits certain types of fraud or misrepresentations related to immigration matters, provides for criminal penalties for such actions, and contains related provisions. Specifically, a person shall be subject to fines, imprisonment, or both, if that person knowingly executes a scheme related to immigration laws to (1) defraud another, or (2) receive anything of value from another based on false pretenses or representations. Such a person shall be subject to additional criminal penalties if that person (1) threatens to report another to federal or state authorities, (2) takes actions or makes attempts to adversely impact another's immigration status, or (3) demands or retains anything of value for services fraudulently performed or not performed. Similarly, a person shall be subject to fines, imprisonment, or both, if the person knowingly and falsely claims to be an attorney or an accredited representative in any matter arising under the immigration laws. (An accredited representative is an individual authorized by the Executive Office of Immigration Review to represent clients in certain immigration matters.) The bill provides for longer terms of imprisonment for a person who causes a cumulative loss of more than $10,000 through actions prohibited under this bill. The Department of Justice shall establish at least 15 Special U.S. Attorney positions to enforce these provisions and take other actions related to enforcement and protecting consumers from fraudulent immigration schemes.
Who sponsors HR 4435?
HR 4435 is sponsored by Escobar, Veronica (Democratic).
What is the current status of HR 4435?
This bill died with 117th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track HR 4435?
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