Sponsors (5)
The bill makes large-scale roadway blockades a federal crime to protect commerce and reduce disruptions, but it increases the risk of federal criminalization and broader prosecutorial discretion for protesters and shifts legal and fiscal burdens to defendants and governments.
Commuters, drivers, and businesses will face fewer disruptions because blocking roads to obstruct commerce is made a federal crime with penalties (up to 5 years), reducing large-scale traffic interruptions.
Federal law enforcement and local governments gain a clearer federal criminal tool to deter and prosecute large-scale road blockades that impede interstate commerce.
People who participate in road-based protests risk federal prosecution and up to 5 years in prison for blocking highways, increasing criminal exposure for demonstrators.
Removing the cross-reference to "threats of violence" may broaden the law's reach and increase prosecutorial discretion, raising the chance of federal charges for conduct that previously required violent threats.
Expanded federal criminal jurisdiction over road blockages could shift cases from state to federal court, increasing legal costs for defendants, taxpayers, and local governments.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Makes it a federal crime to intentionally block a public road or highway and affect commerce, punishable by a fine and/or up to 5 years imprisonment.
Official title: Amend title 18, United States Code, to establish a criminal penalty for interfering with commerce by blocking public roads.
Introduced June 18, 2025 by Thomas Roland Tillis · Last progress June 18, 2025
Creates a new federal crime for intentionally blocking a public road or highway so as to obstruct, delay, or affect interstate or intrastate commerce, including attempts and conspiracies, punishable by a fine and/or up to 5 years in prison. Makes conforming edits to related criminal code cross-references and renumbers existing subsections in the affected statute.