HR 636 Re-checks Congress.gov for new actions and updates the bill's status, and fills in any sponsors, committees, or related bills that are missing. It does not re-pull sponsors/cosponsors/committees/related — those rarely change — and it skips all work if nothing has changed upstream, so it's cheap to click.
Pregnancy Resource Center Defense Act
To amend section 248 of title 18, United States Code, to provide adequate penalties and remedies for attacks on facilities providing counseling about abortion alternatives and attacks on places of religious worship.
Summary
- Increases criminal penalties for attacks on pregnancy resource centers or places of religious worship, with a minimum 7-year sentence for building destruction or arson.
- Establishes a reduced criminal penalty of up to 3 years for first-time offenders who attack pregnancy resource centers or places of religious worship without exclusively nonviolent obstruction.
- Increases civil penalties for violations involving pregnancy resource centers or places of religious worship to $20,000 per violation, with $25,000 for first violations not involving exclusively nonviolent obstruction.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
-
![Rep. Tenney, Claudia [R-NY-24]](https://media.civicgate.org/people/d/politicians/T000478.thumb.jpg)
Rep. Tenney, Claudia (R-NY) [#24]
Money behind the sponsor
Top reported contributors to Claudia Tenney’s campaign committee (2024 cycle) — who funds the bill’s sponsor, not a claim about this bill. Data from FEC.
- Employer not reported $111,905
- WEXFORD CAPITAL $13,300
- HUBBARD BROADCASTING INC. $13,200
- POLARIS $13,200
- BLUFF POINT ASSOC. $13,200
Organizations whose employees gave the most — itemized individual contributions grouped by the donor’s reported employer (FEC Schedule A). Full finance for Claudia Tenney → · Outside spending →
Actions (2)
- Jan 22, 2025 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. · house
- Jan 22, 2025 Introduced in House
More bills on these subjects (8)
Other bills that carry the most legislative subjects in common with this one (topical discovery — distinct from the procedural related bills above).
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Text versions (1)
Bills are re-published as they move (Introduced → Reported → Engrossed → Enrolled …). Each stage below is a separate text; pick two to see what changed. Data from Congress.gov.
Full text
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 22, 2025
Ms. Tenney introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To amend section 248 of title 18, United States Code, to provide adequate penalties and remedies for attacks on facilities providing counseling about abortion alternatives and attacks on places of religious worship.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Pregnancy Resource Center Defense Act”.
SEC. 2. ATTACKS ON FACILITIES PROVIDING COUNSELING ABOUT ABORTION ALTERNATIVES AND PLACES OF RELIGIOUS WORSHIP.
(a) Criminal Penalties.—Section 248(b)(1) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting “, except that for a first offense, if the conduct involved a facility described in subsection
(a)(3) that exclusively provides abortion-alternative services or involved a place of religious worship and did not involve exclusively a nonviolent physical obstruction, the length of imprisonment shall be not more than 3 years” after “or both”.
(b) Civil Remedies.—Section 248(c) of title 18, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1)(B), in the second sentence, by inserting “, or $20,000 per violation for conduct involving a facility described in subsection (a)(3) that exclusively provides abortion-alternative services or involving a place of religious worship” after “per violation”; and
(2) in paragraph (2)(B)(i), by inserting “, $25,000 for a first violation, if the violation involved a facility described in subsection (a)(3) that exclusively provides abortion- alternative services or involved a place of religious worship and did not involve exclusively a nonviolent physical obstruction,” after “physical obstruction”.
SEC. 3. DESTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS, VEHICLES, AND PROPERTY.
Section 844(i) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting “or if the building is a facility described in section 248(a)(3) that exclusively provides abortion-alternative services or is a place of religious worship,” before “shall be imprisoned for not less than 7 years”. <all>
Comments