I 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4362 

To provide effective criminal prosecutions for certain identity thefts, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 16, 2012 

Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (for herself and Mr. SMITH of Texas) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To provide effective criminal prosecutions for certain identity 

thefts, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Stopping Tax Offend5 ers and Prosecuting Identity Theft Act of 2012’’ or the 

6 ‘‘STOP Identity Theft Act of 2012’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. USE OF DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RESOURCES 

2 WITH REGARD TO TAX RETURN IDENTITY 

3 THEFT. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General should 

5 make use of all existing resources of the Department of 

6 Justice, including any appropriate task forces, to bring 

7 more perpetrators of tax return identity theft to justice. 

8 (b) CONSIDERATIONS TO BE TAKEN INTO AC9 COUNT.—In carrying out this section, the Attorney Gen10 eral should take into account the following: 

11 (1) The need to concentrate efforts in those 

12 areas of the country where the crime is most fre13 quently reported. 

14 (2) The need to coordinate with State and local 

15 authorities for the most efficient use of their laws 

16 and resources to prosecute and prevent the crime. 

17 (3) The need to protect vulnerable groups, such 

18 as veterans, seniors, and minors (especially foster 

19 children) from becoming victims or otherwise used in 

20 the offense. 

21 SEC. 3. VICTIMS OF IDENTITY THEFT MAY INCLUDE ORGA22 NIZATIONS. 

23 Section 1028(d)(7) of title 18, United States Code, 

24 is amended by striking ‘‘specific individual’’ and inserting 

25 ‘‘specific person’’. 


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1 SEC. 4. TAX FRAUD AS A PREDICATE FOR AGGRAVATED 

2 IDENTITY THEFT. 

3 Section 1028A(c) of title 18, United States Code, is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) in paragraph (10), by striking ‘‘or’’; 

6 (2) in paragraph (11), by striking the period at 

7 the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

8 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(12) section 7206 or 7207 of the Internal Rev10 enue Code of 1986.’’. 

11 SEC. 5. REPORTING REQUIREMENT. 

12 (a) GENERALLY.—Beginning with the first report 

13 made more than 9 months after the date of the enactment 

14 of this Act under section 1116 of title 31, United States 

15 Code, the Attorney General shall include in such report 

16 the information described in subsection (b) of this section 

17 as to progress in implementing this Act and the amend18 ments made by this Act. 

19 (b) CONTENTS.—The information referred to in sub20 section (a) is as follows: 

21 (1) Information readily available to the Depart22 ment of Justice about trends in the incidence of tax 

23 return identity theft. 

24 (2) The effectiveness of statutory tools, includ25 ing those provided by this Act, in aiding the DepartVerDate Mar 15 2010 06:04 Apr 17, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4362.IH H4362

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1 ment of Justice in the prosecution of tax return 

2 identity theft. 

3 (3) Recommendations on additional statutory 

4 tools that would aid in removing barriers to effective 

5 prosecution of tax return identity theft. 

6 (4) The status on implementing the rec7 ommendations of the Department’s March 2010 

8 Audit Report 10–21 entitled ‘‘The Department of 

9 Justice’s Efforts to Combat Identity Theft’’. 

Æ 


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