[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4630 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4630
To amend chapter 37 of title 18, United States Code, to authorize
appropriate disclosure of classified information, to appropriately
limit the scope of the offense of disclosing classified information,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 27, 2022
Mr. Wyden introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend chapter 37 of title 18, United States Code, to authorize
appropriate disclosure of classified information, to appropriately
limit the scope of the offense of disclosing classified information,
and for other purposes.
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 ``Espionage Act Reform Act of 2022''.
SEC. 2. DISCLOSURE OF CLASSIFIED INFORMATION RELATED TO SIGNALS
INTELLIGENCE.
(a) Authority To Disclose Information.--Section 798(c) of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by striking ``furnishing,'' and all that
follows and inserting the following: ``furnishing of information to--
``(1) any Member of the Senate or the House of
Representatives;
``(2) a Federal court, in accordance with such procedures
as the court may establish;
``(3) the inspector general of an element of the
intelligence community (as defined in section 3 of the National
Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3003)), including the Inspector
General of the Intelligence Community;
``(4) the Chairman or a member of the Privacy and Civil
Liberties Oversight Board or any employee of the Board
designated by the Board, in accordance with such procedures as
the Board may establish;
``(5) the Chairman or a commissioner of the Federal Trade
Commission or any employee of the Commission designated by the
Commission, in accordance with such procedures as the
Commission may establish;
``(6) the Chairman or a commissioner of the Federal
Communications Commission or any employee of the Commission
designated by the Commission, in accordance with such
procedures as the Commission may establish; or
``(7) any other person or entity authorized to receive
disclosures containing classified information pursuant to any
applicable law, regulation, or executive order regarding the
protection of whistleblowers.''.
(b) Authorized Persons.--Section 798(b) of title 18, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding the first undesignated
paragraph, by striking ``this section--'' and inserting ``this
section:'';
(2) by striking ``The term `classified information' means
information which, at the time of a violation of this section,
is,'' and inserting the following:
``(1) The term `classified information'--
``(A) means information which, at the time of a
violation of this section, is known to the person
violating this section to be,'';
(3) in paragraph (1), as so designated--
(A) by inserting ``and'' after ``distribution;'';
and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) does not include any information that is
specifically designated as `Unclassified' under any
Executive Order, Act of Congress, or action by a
committee of Congress in accordance with the rules of
its House of Congress.'';
(4) by striking ``The terms `code,' `cipher,' and
`cryptographic system' include'' and inserting the following:
``(2) The terms `code', `cipher', and `cryptographic
system' include'';
(5) in paragraph (2), as so designated, by striking
``communications;'' and inserting ``communications.'';
(6) by striking ``The term `foreign'' and inserting the
following:
``(5) The term `foreign'';
(7) in paragraph (5), as so designated, by striking
``United States;'' and inserting ``United States.'';
(8) by striking ``The term `communication'' and inserting
the following:
``(3) The term `communication'';
(9) in paragraph (3), as so designated, by striking
``recipients;'' and inserting ``recipients.'';
(10) by transferring paragraph (3), as so designated, to
appear after paragraph (2), as so designated; and
(11) by striking ``The term `unauthorized'' and all that
follows through ``for the United States.'' and inserting the
following:
``(6) The term `unauthorized person' means any person who,
or agency which, is not authorized to receive information of
the categories set forth in subsection (a) of this section by--
``(A) the President;
``(B) the head of a department or agency of the
United States Government which is expressly designated
by the President to engage in communication
intelligence activities for the United States; or
``(C) an Act of Congress.''.
(c) Scope of Prohibition.--Section 798 of title 18, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding paragraph
(1)--
(A) by striking ``Whoever'' and inserting ``Any
individual who''; and
(B) by inserting ``obtained by the individual while
the individual was a covered person and acting within
the scope of his or her activities as a covered
person'' after ``any classified information''; and
(2) in subsection (b), by inserting after paragraph (3), as
so designated and transferred by subsection (b) of this
section, the following:
``(4) The term `covered person' means an individual who--
``(A) receives official access to classified
information granted by the United States Government;
``(B) signs a nondisclosure agreement with regard
to such classified information; and
``(C) is authorized to receive information of the
categories set forth in subsection (a) of this
section--
``(i) by the President; or
``(ii) the head of a department or agency
of the United States Government which is
expressly designated by the President to engage
in communication intelligence activities for
the United States.''.
(d) Limitation on Scope.--Section 798 of title 18, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (e); and
(2) by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
``(d)(1) In this subsection, the term `foreign agent'--
``(A) has the meaning given the term `agent of a foreign
power' under section 101 of the Foreign Intelligence
Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1801); and
``(B) does not include a person who is an agent of a
foreign power (as so defined) with respect to a foreign power
described in section 101(a)(5) of the Foreign Intelligence
Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1801(a)(5)).
``(2) A foreign agent who--
``(A) aids, abets, counsels, commands, induces, or procures
the commission of an offense under this section shall be
subject to prosecution under this section by virtue of section
2 of this title;
``(B) knowing that an offense under this section has been
committed by another person, receives, relieves, comforts, or
assists such other person in order to hinder or prevent the
apprehension, trial, or punishment of such other person shall
be subject to prosecution under section 3 of this title;
``(C) having knowledge of the actual commission of an
offense under this section, conceals and does not as soon as
possible make known the same to some judge or other person in
civil or military authority under the United States shall be
subject to prosecution under section 4 of this title; or
``(D) conspires to commit an offense under this section
shall be subject to prosecution under section 371 of this
title.
``(3) Any person who is not a foreign agent shall not be subject to
prosecution under this section by virtue of section 2 of this title or
under section 3, 4, or 371 of this title, unless the person--
``(A) commits a felony under Federal law in the course of
committing an offense under this section (by virtue of section
2 of this title) or under section 3, 4, or 371 of this title;
``(B) was a covered person at the time of the offense; or
``(C) subject to paragraph (4), directly and materially
aids, or procures in exchange for anything of monetary value,
the commission of an offense under this section with the
specific intent to--
``(i) harm the national security of the United
States; or
``(ii) benefit any foreign government to the
detriment of the United States.
``(4) Paragraph (3)(C) shall not apply to direct and material aid
that consists of--
``(A) counseling, education, or other speech activity; or
``(B) providing an electronic communication service to the
public or a remote computing service (as such terms are defined
in section 2510 and 2711, respectively).''.
SEC. 3. GATHERING, TRANSMITTING, OR LOSING DEFENSE INFORMATION.
(a) Definitions.--Section 793 of title 18, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(i) In this section--
``(1) the term `covered person' means an individual who--
``(A) receives official access to classified
information granted by the United States Government;
``(B) signs a nondisclosure agreement with regard
to such classified information; and
``(C) is authorized to receive documents, writings,
code books, signal books, sketches, photographs,
photographic negatives, blueprints, plans, maps,
models, instruments, appliances, or notes of anything
connected with the national defense by--
``(i) the President; or
``(ii) the head of a department or agency
of the United States Government which is
expressly designated by the President to engage
in activities relating to the national defense;
and
``(2) the term `foreign agent'--
``(A) has the meaning given the term `agent of a
foreign power' under section 101 of the Foreign
Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1801);
and
``(B) does not include a person who is an agent of
a foreign power (as so defined) with respect to a
foreign power described in section 101(a)(5) of the
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50
U.S.C. 1801(a)(5)).''.
(b) Obtaining or Receiving Defense Information.--Section 793(c) of
title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking ``Whoever'' and inserting ``A foreign agent
who'';
(2) by inserting ``and with like intent or reason to
believe,'' after ``aforesaid,''; and
(3) by striking ``he'' and inserting ``the foreign agent''.
(c) Transmission of Lawfully Possessed Defense Information to
Unauthorized Persons.--Section 793(d) of title 18, United States Code,
is amended by striking ``or note relating to the national defense, or
information relating to the national defense which information'' and
inserting ``note, or information relating to the national defense,
which document, writing, code book, signal book, sketch, photograph,
photographic negative, blueprint, plan, map, model, instrument,
appliance, note, or information''.
(d) Transmission of Unlawfully Possessed Defense Information to
Unauthorized Persons.--Section 793(e) of title 18, United States Code,
is amended to read as follows:
``(e) An individual who--
``(1) while a covered person, gains unauthorized possession
of, access to, or control over any nonpublic document, writing,
code book, signal book, sketch, photograph, photographic
negative, blueprint, plan, map, model, instrument, appliance,
or note of anything connected with the national defense; and
``(2)(A) with reason to believe such information could be
used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of
any foreign nation, willfully communicates, delivers,
transmits, or causes to be communicated, delivered, or
transmitted, or attempts to communicate, deliver, transmit, or
cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, the same
to any person not entitled to receive it; or
``(B) willfully--
``(i) retains the same at an unauthorized location;
and
``(ii) fails to deliver the same to the officer or
employee of the United States entitled to receive it;
or''.
(e) Obtaining Information From Places Connected With the National
Defense.--Section 793(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``otherwise obtains information concerning'' and inserting
``otherwise unlawfully obtains nonpublic information concerning''.
(f) Copying and Taking Defense Information.--Section 793(b) of
title 18, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking ``Whoever,'' and inserting ``An individual
who, while a covered person,''; and
(2) by inserting ``nonpublic'' before ``sketch,''.
(g) Limitation on Scope.--Section 793 of title 18, United States
Code, is amended by striking subsection (g) and inserting the
following:
``(g)(1) A foreign agent who--
``(A) aids, abets, counsels, commands, induces, or procures
the commission of an offense under this section shall be
subject to prosecution under this section by virtue of section
2 of this title;
``(B) knowing that an offense under this section has been
committed by another person, receives, relieves, comforts, or
assists such other person in order to hinder or prevent the
apprehension, trial, or punishment of such other person shall
be subject to prosecution under section 3 of this title;
``(C) having knowledge of the actual commission of an
offense under this section, conceals and does not as soon as
possible make known the same to some judge or other person in
civil or military authority under the United States shall be
subject to prosecution under section 4 of this title; or
``(D) conspires to commit an offense under this section
shall be subject to prosecution under section 371 of this
title.
``(2) Any person who is not a foreign agent shall not be subject to
prosecution under this section by virtue of section 2 of this title or
under section 3, 4, or 371 of this title, unless the person--
``(A) commits a felony under Federal law in the course of
committing an offense under this section (by virtue of section
2 of this title) or under section 3, 4, or 371 of this title;
``(B) was a covered person at the time of the offense; or
``(C) subject to paragraph (3), directly and materially
aids, or procures in exchange for anything of monetary value,
the commission of an offense under this section with the
specific intent to--
``(i) harm the national security of the United
States; or
``(ii) benefit any foreign government to the
detriment of the United States.
``(3) Paragraph (2)(C) shall not apply to direct and material aid
that consists of--
``(A) counseling, education, or other speech activity; or
``(B) providing an electronic communication service to the
public or a remote computing service (as such terms are defined
in section 2510 and 2711, respectively).''.
SEC. 4. PUBLIC MONEY, PROPERTY, OR RECORDS.
Section 641 of title 18, United States Code, is amended in the
first undesignated paragraph by inserting ``tangible'' before ``thing
of value''.
SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in section 793 or 798 of title 18, United States Code,
shall be construed to supersede or limit the protections under the
speech or debate clause of the Constitution of the United States.
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