I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5319 
To prohibit abortions in the admiralty and maritime jurisdiction of the United 
States, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
AUGUST 29, 2023 
Mr. WEBER of Texas (for himself, Mr. GOSAR, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. WILLIAMS 
of Texas, Mrs. MILLER of Illinois, Mr. STEUBE, Mr. MOONEY, Mr. 
BIGGS, Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana, Mr. BABIN, and Ms. HAGEMAN) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Ju-
diciary 
A BILL 
To prohibit abortions in the admiralty and maritime 
jurisdiction of the United States, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ban Offshore Abortion 
Tourism Act’’ or the ‘‘BOAT Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. PROHIBITING ABORTION IN THE CERTAIN JURIS-
DICTIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 74 of title 18, United 
States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1531 
the following: 
‘‘§ 1532. Abortions in the admiralty and maritime ju-
risdiction of the United States 
‘‘(a) OFFENSE.—Subject to subsection (b), any per-
son who, in the admiralty and maritime jurisdiction of the 
United States, knowingly performs an abortion and there-
by kills a human fetus shall be fined under this title, im-
prisoned not more than 5 years, or both. 
‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) does not apply if— 
‘‘(1) in reasonable medical judgment, the abor-
tion is necessary to save the life of a pregnant 
woman whose life is endangered by a physical dis-
order, physical illness, or physical injury, including 
a life-endangering physical condition caused by or 
arising from the pregnancy itself, but not including 
psychological or emotional conditions; 
‘‘(2) the pregnancy is the result of rape against 
an adult woman, and at least 48 hours prior to the 
abortion— 
‘‘(A) she has obtained counseling for the 
rape; or 
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‘‘(B) she has obtained medical treatment 
for the rape or an injury related to the rape; or 
‘‘(3) the pregnancy is a result of rape against 
a minor or incest against a minor, and the rape or 
incest has been reported at any time prior to the 
abortion to either— 
‘‘(A) a government agency legally author-
ized to act on reports of child abuse; or 
‘‘(B) a law enforcement agency. 
‘‘(c) BAR TO PROSECUTION.—A woman upon whom 
an abortion in violation of subsection (a) is performed or 
attempted may not be prosecuted under, or for a con-
spiracy to violate, subsection (a), or for an offense under 
section 2, 3, or 4 of this title based on such a violation. 
‘‘(d) CIVIL REMEDIES.— 
‘‘(1) CIVIL ACTION BY A WOMAN ON WHOM AN 
ABORTION IS PERFORMED.—A woman upon whom 
an abortion has been performed or attempted in vio-
lation of any provision of this section may, in a civil 
action before the appropriate district court of the 
United States against any person who committed the 
violation, obtain appropriate relief. 
‘‘(2) CIVIL ACTION BY A PARENT OF A MINOR 
ON WHOM ABORTION IS PERFORMED.—A parent of 
a minor upon whom an abortion has been performed 
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or attempted under an exception provided for in sub-
section (b)(2)(B), and that was performed in viola-
tion of any provision of this section may, in a civil 
action before the appropriate district court of the 
United States against any person who committed the 
violation obtain appropriate relief, unless the preg-
nancy resulted from the plaintiff’s criminal conduct. 
‘‘(3) APPROPRIATE RELIEF.—Appropriate relief 
in a civil action under this subsection includes— 
‘‘(A) objectively verifiable money damages 
for all injuries, psychological and physical, occa-
sioned by the violation; 
‘‘(B) statutory damages equal to three 
times the cost of the abortion; and 
‘‘(C) punitive damages. 
‘‘(4) ATTORNEYS’ FEES FOR PLAINTIFF.—If a 
plaintiff in a civil action under this subsection pre-
vails, the court shall award a reasonable attorney’s 
fee in favor of the plaintiff against the defendant. 
‘‘(5) ATTORNEYS’ FEES FOR DEFENDANT.—If a 
defendant in a civil action under this subsection pre-
vails and the court finds that the plaintiff’s suit was 
frivolous, the court shall award a reasonable attor-
ney’s fee in favor of the defendant against the plain-
tiff. 
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‘‘(6) AWARD
AGAINST
WOMAN
UPON
WHOM 
ABORTION
IS
PERFORMED.—Except under para-
graph (5), in a civil action under this subsection, no 
damages, attorneys’ fees, or other monetary relief 
may be assessed against the woman upon whom the 
abortion was performed or attempted.’’. 
(b) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections for 
chapter 74 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 
by inserting after section 1531 the following: 
‘‘1532. Abortions in the admiralty and maritime jurisdiction of the United 
States’’. 
Æ 
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