Notes on 18 U.S.C. § 831 : US Code - Notes

Search Notes on 18 U.S.C. § 831 : US Code - Notes

(Added Pub. L. 97-351, Sec. 2(a), Oct. 18, 1982, 96 Stat. 1663;
amended Pub. L. 100-690, title VII, Sec. 7022, Nov. 18, 1988, 102
Stat. 4397; Pub. L. 103-272, Sec. 5(e)(6), July 5, 1994, 108 Stat.
1374; Pub. L. 103-322, title XXXIII, Sec. 330016(2)(C), Sept. 13,
1994, 108 Stat. 2148; Pub. L. 104-132, title V, Sec. 502, Apr. 24,
1996, 110 Stat. 1282.)
PRIOR PROVISIONS
A prior section 831, acts June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 738;
Sept. 6, 1960, Pub. L. 86-710, 74 Stat. 808; July 27, 1965, Pub. L.
89-95, 79 Stat. 285; Oct. 17, 1978, Pub. L. 95-473; Sec.
2(a)(1)(A), 92 Stat. 1464, defined terms used in this chapter,
prior to repeal by Pub. L. 96-129, title II, Sec. 216(b), Nov. 30,
1979, 93 Stat. 1015. For savings provisions regarding former
section 831, see section 218 of Pub. L. 96-129, set out as a note
under former sections 832 to 835 of this title.
AMENDMENTS
1996 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(1)(A), substituted
"nuclear material or nuclear byproduct material" for "nuclear
material" wherever appearing.
Subsec. (a)(1)(A). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(1)(B)(i), inserted
"or to the environment" after "damage to property".
Subsec. (a)(1)(B). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(1)(B)(ii), amended
subpar. (B) generally. Prior to amendment, subpar. (B) read as
follows: "knows that circumstances exist which are likely to cause
the death of or serious bodily injury to any person or substantial
damage to property;".
Subsec. (a)(6). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(1)(C), inserted "or to
the environment" after "damage to property".
Subsec. (c)(2). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(2)(A), amended par. (2)
generally. Prior to amendment, par. (2) read as follows: "the
defendant is a national of the United States, as defined in section
101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101);".
Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(2)(B), struck out "at
the time of the offense the nuclear material is in use, storage, or
transport, for peaceful purposes, and" before "after the conduct"
and struck out "or" at end.
Subsec. (c)(4). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(2)(C), substituted
"nuclear material or nuclear byproduct material" for "nuclear
material for peaceful purposes" and "; or" for period at end.
Subsec. (c)(5). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(2)(D), added par. (5).
Subsec. (f)(1)(A). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(3)(A)(i), struck out
"with an isotopic concentration not in excess of 80 percent
plutonium 238" after "plutonium".
Subsec. (f)(1)(C). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(3)(A)(ii),
substituted "enriched uranium, defined as uranium" for "uranium".
Subsec. (f)(2) to (7). Pub. L. 104-132, Sec. 502(3)(B)-(F), added
par. (2), redesignated former pars. (2) to (4) as (3) to (5),
respectively, and added pars. (6) and (7).
1994 - Subsec. (b)(1)(A), (2)(A). Pub. L. 103-322 substituted
"fined under this title" for "fine of not more than $250,000".
Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 103-272 substituted "section 46501 of
title 49" for "section 101 of the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 (49
U.S.C. 1301)".
1988 - Subsec. (e)(2) to (6). Pub. L. 100-690 redesignated pars.
(3) to (6) as (2) to (5), respectively.
SHORT TITLE OF 1982 AMENDMENT
Section 1 of Pub. L. 97-351 provided that: "This Act [enacting
this section and amending section 1116 of this title] may be cited
as the 'Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material
Implementation Act of 1982'."
FINDINGS AND PURPOSE OF TITLE V OF PUB. L. 104-132 RELATING TO
NUCLEAR MATERIALS
Section 501 of title V of Pub. L. 104-132 provided that:
"(a) Findings. - The Congress finds that -
"(1) nuclear materials, including byproduct materials, can be
used to create radioactive dispersal devices that are capable of
causing serious bodily injury as well as substantial damage to
property and to the environment;
"(2) the potential use of nuclear materials, including
byproduct materials, enhances the threat posed by terrorist
activities and thereby has a greater effect on the security
interests of the United States;
"(3) due to the widespread hazards presented by the threat of
nuclear contamination, as well as nuclear bombs, the United
States has a strong interest in ensuring that persons who are
engaged in the illegal acquisition and use of nuclear materials,
including byproduct materials, are prosecuted for their offenses;
"(4) the threat that nuclear materials will be obtained and
used by terrorist and other criminal organizations has increased
substantially since the enactment in 1982 of the legislation that
implemented the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear
Material, codified at section 831 of title 18, United States
Code;
"(5) the successful efforts to obtain agreements from other
countries to dismantle nuclear weapons have resulted in increased
packaging and transportation of nuclear materials, thereby
decreasing the security of such materials by increasing the
opportunity for unlawful diversion and theft;
"(6) the trafficking in the relatively more common,
commercially available, and usable nuclear and byproduct
materials creates the potential for significant loss of life and
environmental damage;
"(7) report trafficking incidents in the early 1990's suggest
that the individuals involved in trafficking in these materials
from Eurasia and Eastern Europe frequently conducted their black
market sales of these materials within the Federal Republic of
Germany, the Baltic States, the former Soviet Union, Central
Europe, and to a lesser extent in the Middle European countries;
"(8) the international community has become increasingly
concerned over the illegal possession of nuclear and nuclear
byproduct materials;
"(9) the potentially disastrous ramifications of increased
access to nuclear and nuclear byproduct materials pose such a
significant threat that the United States must use all lawful
methods available to combat the illegal use of such materials;
"(10) the United States has an interest in encouraging United
States corporations to do business in the countries that
comprised the former Soviet Union, and in other developing
democracies;
"(11) protection of such United States corporations from
threats created by the unlawful use of nuclear materials is
important to the success of the effort to encourage business
ventures in these countries, and to further the foreign relations
and commerce of the United States;
"(12) the nature of nuclear contamination is such that it may
affect the health, environment, and property of United States
nationals even if the acts that constitute the illegal activity
occur outside the territory of the United States, and are
primarily directed toward foreign nationals; and
"(13) there is presently no Federal criminal statute that
provides adequate protection to United States interests from
nonweapons grade, yet hazardous radioactive material, and from
the illegal diversion of nuclear materials that are held for
other than peaceful purposes.
"(b) Purpose. - The purpose of this title [enacting section 2332c
of this title, amending this section and sections 175, 177, 178,
and 2332a of this title, and enacting provisions set out as notes
under section 262 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, and
section 1522 of Title 50, War and National Defense] is to provide
Federal law enforcement agencies with the necessary means and the
maximum authority permissible under the Constitution to combat the
threat of nuclear contamination and proliferation that may result
from the illegal possession and use of radioactive materials."