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H.R. 4362: STOP Identity Theft Act of 2012

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H.R. 4362: STOP Identity Theft Act of 2012

112th Congress · introduced 2012-04-16 · Crime and Law Enforcement · Latest: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2012-04-16 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. Wasserman Schultz, Debbie [D-FL-20] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

STOP Identity Theft Act of 2012

Plain summary

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.) Stopping Tax Offenders and Prosecuting Identity Theft Act of 2012 or the STOP Identity Theft Act of 2012 - Calls for the Attorney General to: (1) make use of all existing resources of the Department of Justice (DOJ), including task forces, to bring more perpetrators of tax return identity theft to justice; and (2) take into account the need to concentrate efforts in areas of the country where the crime is most frequently reported, to coordinate with state and local authorities to prosecute and prevent such crime, and to protect vulnerable groups from becoming victims or otherwise being used in the offense. Amends the federal criminal code to: (1) define "means of identification" to mean any name or number used to identify a specific person (currently, any specific individual); and (2) make tax fraud a predicate offense for aggravated identity theft. Directs the Attorney General to include in the first annual DOJ performance report made more than nine months after the date of this Act's enactment information as to progress in implementing this Act regarding: (1) information readily available to DOJ about trends in the incidence of tax return identity theft, (2) the effectiveness of statutory tools in aiding DOJ in prosecuting it, (3) recommendations on additional statutory tools that would aid in removing barriers to effective prosecution, and (4) the status of implementing DOJ's March 2010 audit report on DOJ efforts to combat identity theft.

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House without amendment), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

STOP Identity Theft Act of 2012

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House without amendment)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Wasserman Schultz, Debbie [D-FL-20] · 13 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Linda T. Sánchez (D-CA), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY), Mike Quigley (D-IL)

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Wasserman Schultz, Debbie [D-FL-20] reported raising $3.7 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)
Statute
A written law passed by a legislature. A statute can be changed by a later law; changing a constitution needs an amendment.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong112-hr4362 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong112 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong112