Sponsor
Ken Calvert
Representative · R-CA
Representative · R-CA
The bill strengthens penalties for mail theft to improve deterrence and give prosecutors more leverage, but does so by lengthening prison terms — increasing incarceration costs and raising the risk of uneven, disproportionate impacts on low‑income and minority defendants.
Postal inspectors and federal prosecutors gain stronger sentencing leverage to pursue longer penalties for mail theft, giving law enforcement more tools to deter and prosecute offenders.
People and businesses who are victims of mail theft may experience fewer losses over time if the tougher penalties deter repeat or opportunistic mail theft.
Low‑income and minority defendants could be disproportionately affected if the longer sentences are applied unevenly, worsening racial and economic disparities in the criminal justice system.
Longer maximum sentences are likely to increase federal incarceration expenses and exacerbate prison overcrowding, shifting higher costs onto taxpayers and the federal prison system.
People convicted of mail theft face substantially longer prison terms (up to roughly double), increasing financial and personal costs for defendants and raising prosecution/incarceration costs borne by taxpayers.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Raises the federal maximum prison sentence for mail theft from 5 years to 10 years and provides a short title for the Act.
Official title: To amend title 18, United States Code, to increase the maximum penalty for mail theft.
Introduced February 13, 2025 by Ken Calvert · Last progress February 13, 2025
Doubles the maximum federal prison term for mail theft by amending the criminal statute: increases the cap from 5 years to 10 years. Also sets an official short title for the Act.