Sponsors (2)
The bill expands federal reach and penalties to better protect and deter video voyeurism—improving victim protections and enforcement consistency—while increasing federal caseloads and exposing more defendants and businesses to harsher federal prosecution and compliance risk.
Victims of video voyeurism (including vulnerable people such as those with chronic conditions) gain broader federal protection because the law reaches conduct involving interstate travel, communications, payments, equipment, or commerce.
Potential offenders face stronger deterrence because the maximum federal prison term for the covered conduct increases from 1 year to 5 years.
Federal prosecutors and courts can more readily pursue cross-border and online voyeurism cases, improving enforcement consistency across states and on digital platforms.
Defendants who previously would have faced only state charges may face harsher federal penalties and longer sentences, increasing risks of greater incarceration and collateral consequences.
Private individuals and small businesses (e.g., device sellers, payment processors, tech firms) could be exposed to federal investigations when equipment, payments, or communications cross state lines, raising compliance and legal risk.
More conduct being subject to federal charges will increase caseloads for the Department of Justice and federal courts, potentially diverting federal resources from other priorities.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Broadens federal jurisdiction for video voyeurism to many interstate/electronic situations and raises the maximum prison term from 1 to 5 years.
Official title: To amend title 18, United States Code, to expand the scope of the prohibition against video voyeurism.
Introduced February 11, 2025 by Nancy Mace · Last progress February 11, 2025
Expands the federal video voyeurism law to reach many acts that cross state or national lines and increases the maximum prison term from one year to five years. It replaces a narrow venue test with a list of seven jurisdictional triggers so that use of interstate commerce, travel, transmission, equipment, payments, or conduct affecting interstate/foreign commerce can make the offense federal.