H.R. 3492 — Protect Children’s Innocence Act

This section revises 18 U.S.C. § 116 in its entirety to prohibit, under expanded federal jurisdictional circumstances (adding use of interstate instruments/substances, special maritime/territorial jurisdiction, and conduct affecting commerce), (1) performing or attempting genital or bodily mutilation on a minor, (2) chemically castrating a minor, and (3) facilitating/consenting to or transporting a minor for female genital mutilation, with penalties of fine, imprisonment for not more than 10 years, or both (unchanged). It defines "genital or bodily mutilation" to include female genital mutilation; surgeries to change the body to correspond to a sex differing from biological sex (i.e., castration, orchiectomy, scrotoplasty, vasectomy, hysterectomy, oophorectomy, ovariectomy, metoidioplasty, penectomy, phalloplasty, vaginoplasty, vaginectomy, vulvoplasty, reduction thyrochondroplasty, chondrolaryngoplasty, mastectomy); and certain plastic surgery. (As background, the prior law prohibited only female genital mutilation on persons under age 18, including by parents/guardians/caretakers or via transport.) The section provides exceptions for procedures necessary to a minor's physical health (excluding mental, behavioral, or emotional conditions), performed by licensed practitioners; for female genital mutilation during labor/birth; and for individuals with specified genetic, intersex, infectious, precocious puberty, or imminent physical danger conditions; prohibits religion/custom/ritual defenses for female genital mutilation under subsection (a); and bars prosecution of victims.