I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 10398 

To prohibit certain sex offenders from entering or using the services of 

certain emergency shelters, to authorize the Administrator of the Federal 

Emergency Management Agency to designate emergency shelters for such 

sex offenders, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 12, 2024 

Ms. MACE (for herself, Mr. VAN DREW, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Mrs. LUNA, 

and Ms. BOEBERT) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 

the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to 

the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To prohibit certain sex offenders from entering or using 

the services of certain emergency shelters, to authorize 

the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to designate emergency shelters for such 

sex offenders, 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 ‘‘Safe Shelters Act of 

5 2024’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. EMERGENCY SHELTERS FOR SEX OFFENDERS. 

2 (a) PROHIBITION ON USE OF UNDESIGNATED SHEL3 TERS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except for the purpose of 

5 seeking information on designated shelters, a cov6 ered sex offender may not enter or use the services 

7 of an undesignated shelter. 

8 (2) NOTIFICATION.—A covered sex offender 

9 who enters an undesignated shelter shall, imme10 diately upon entering such shelter, notify any indi11 vidual operating such shelter that such offender is 

12 required to register on the National Sex Offender 

13 Registry. 

14 (3) PROVISION OF INFORMATION.—Upon re15 ceiving a notification from a covered sex offender 

16 under paragraph (2), the individual so notified shall 

17 inform such offender of— 

18 (A) any designated shelter; and 

19 (B) the prohibition in paragraph (1). 

20 (4) PENALTY.—Whoever, in or affecting inter21 state commerce, being a covered sex offender, know22 ingly fails to comply with paragraph (1) or (2) shall 

23 be fined under title 18, United States Code, impris24 oned not more than 5 years, or both. 


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1 (5) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This subsection shall 

2 take effect 180 days after the date of enactment of 

3 this Act. 

4 (b) DESIGNATED SHELTERS FOR SEX OFFEND5 ERS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the 

7 Federal Emergency Management Agency may, as 

8 necessary, designate a Federal building or Federal 

9 prison from the lists created pursuant to paragraph 

10 (2) as a designated shelter for the duration, as de11 termined by the Administrator, of a disaster de12 scribed in section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Dis13 aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 

14 U.S.C. 5122). 

15 (2) LISTS OF BUILDINGS AND PRISONS.—Not 

16 later than 180 days after the date of enactment of 

17 this Act and on an ongoing basis thereafter, the Ad18 ministrator of the General Services Administration 

19 and Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall each 

20 make available to the Administrator of the Federal 

21 Emergency Management Agency a list of available 

22 Federal buildings or Federal prisons, as appropriate, 

23 that the Administrator of the Federal Emergency 

24 Management Agency may designate pursuant to 

25 paragraph (1). 


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1 (3) DISTRIBUTION OF INFORMATION.—The Ad2 ministrator of the Federal Emergency Management 

3 Agency shall make available to each individual oper4 ating an undesignated shelter information on each 

5 designated shelter. 

6 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 (1) COVERED SEX OFFENDER.—The term ‘‘cov8 ered sex offender’’ means a sex offender who is re9 quired to register on the National Sex Offender Reg10 istry under section 113 of the Adam Walsh Child 

11 Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (34 U.S.C. 

12 20913). 

13 (2) DESIGNATED SHELTER.—The term ‘‘des14 ignated shelter’’ means an emergency shelter that is 

15 designated for use under this section by covered sex 

16 offenders only. 

17 (3) EMERGENCY SHELTER.—The term ‘‘emer18 gency shelter’’ means a shelter run by the Federal 

19 Emergency Management Agency or a State or local 

20 government in response to a disaster described in 

21 section 102 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

22 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122). 

23 (4) NATIONAL SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY.—The 

24 term ‘‘National Sex Offender Registry’’ means the 

25 national database established under section 119 of 


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1 the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 

2 2006 (34 U.S.C. 20921). 

3 (5) SEX OFFENDER.—The term ‘‘sex offender’’ 

4 has the meaning given such term in section 111 of 

5 the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 

6 2006 (34 U.S.C. 20911). 

7 (6) UNDESIGNATED SHELTER.—The term ‘‘un8 designated shelter’’ means an emergency shelter 

9 other than a designated shelter. 

Æ 


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