H.R. 263 — Transnational Criminal Organization Illicit Spotter Prevention and Elimination Act

This section establishes new criminal offenses under new section 295 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) for (1) illicit spotting—knowingly transmitting the location, movement, or activities of law enforcement to further specified federal crimes relating to immigration, customs, controlled substances, agriculture, monetary instruments, or other border controls (punishable by fine, up to 10 years imprisonment, or both); and (2) destroying, altering, damaging, or circumventing federal border control devices such as fences, barriers, sensors, or cameras (punishable by fine, up to 10 years imprisonment, or both; or up to 20 years if a firearm is used, carried, or possessed), with conspiracy or attempt punished similarly. This section amends 18 U.S.C. 924(c)—which imposes mandatory minimum penalties for using or carrying a firearm during and in relation to specified crimes—to include "alien smuggling crimes" (i.e., felonies under INA §§274(a), 277, or 278), restructures the provision by striking paragraphs (2) through (4) and redesignating paragraph (5) as (2), and adds definitions for alien smuggling crime, brandish, crime of violence, and drug trafficking crime. This section makes conforming amendments to the Bankruptcy Code, various sections of title 18 of the U.S. Code, and the Interstate Transportation of Dangerous Criminals Act to update cross-references to the revised definitions in 18 U.S.C. 924(c). This section extends the 10-year statute of limitations under 18 U.S.C. 3298 for non-capital offenses (and conspiracies) under specified peonage, slavery, forced labor, and trafficking statutes or INA §274(a) to also include offenses under new INA §295.