18 U.S.C. § 506 — Seals of departments or agencies

Page 131 TITLE 18—CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE § 506 1 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘42’’. 2 So in original. The word ‘‘benefits’’ probably should not ap- pear. and other obligations and securities for educational, historical, and newsworthy purposes, and permitted motion picture films, microfilms, and slides of United States and foreign postage and revenue stamps, paper money, and other obligations and securities, except films in connection with advertising. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1984 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 98–369 effective July 18, 1984, see section 1077(c) of Pub. L. 98–369, set out as a note under section 718e of Title 16, Conservation. § 505. Seals of courts; signatures of judges or court officers Whoever forges the signature of any judge, register, or other officer of any court of the United States, or of any Territory thereof, or forges or counterfeits the seal of any such court, or knowingly concurs in using any such forged or counterfeit signature or seal, for the purpose of authenticating any proceeding or document, or tenders in evidence any such proceeding or document with a false or counterfeit signature of any such judge, register, or other officer, or a false or counterfeit seal of the court, subscribed or attached thereto, knowing such signature or seal to be false or counterfeit, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both. (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 714; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(K), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 236 (Mar. 4, 1909, ch. 321, § 130, 35 Stat. 1112). Mandatory punishment provision was rephrased in the alternative. Minor changes of phraseology were made. Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted ‘‘fined under this title’’ for ‘‘fined not more than $5,000’’. § 506. Seals of departments or agencies (a) Whoever— (1) falsely makes, forges, counterfeits, muti- lates, or alters the seal of any department or agency of the United States, or any facsimile thereof; (2) knowingly uses, affixes, or impresses any such fraudulently made, forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered seal or facsimile thereof to or upon any certificate, instrument, com- mission, document, or paper of any descrip- tion; or (3) with fraudulent intent, possesses, sells, offers for sale, furnishes, offers to furnish, gives away, offers to give away, transports, of- fers to transport, imports, or offers to import any such seal or facsimile thereof, knowing the same to have been so falsely made, forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered, shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both. (b) Notwithstanding subsection (a) or any other provision of law, if a forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered seal of a department or agency of the United States, or any facsimile thereof, is— (1) so forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or al- tered; (2) used, affixed, or impressed to or upon any certificate, instrument, commission, docu- ment, or paper of any description; or (3) with fraudulent intent, possessed, sold, offered for sale, furnished, offered to furnish, given away, offered to give away, transported, offered to transport, imported, or offered to import, with the intent or effect of facilitating an alien’s application for, or receipt of, a Federal benefit to which the alien is not entitled, the penalties which may be imposed for each offense under subsection (a) shall be two times the max- imum fine, and 3 times the maximum term of imprisonment, or both, that would otherwise be imposed for an offense under subsection (a). (c) For purposes of this section— (1) the term ‘‘Federal benefit’’ means— (A) the issuance of any grant, contract, loan, professional license, or commercial li- cense provided by any agency of the United States or by appropriated funds of the United States; and (B) any retirement, welfare, Social Secu- rity, health (including treatment of an emergency medical condition in accordance with section 1903(v) of the Social Security Act (19 1 U.S.C. 1396b(v))), disability, vet- erans, public housing, education, supple- mental nutrition assistance program bene- fits,2 or unemployment benefit, or any simi- lar benefit for which payments or assistance are provided by an agency of the United States or by appropriated funds of the United States; and (2) each instance of forgery, counterfeiting, mutilation, or alteration shall constitute a separate offense under this section. (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 714; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(K), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147; Pub. L. 104–208, div. C, title V, § 561, Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 3009–681; Pub. L. 110–234, title IV, § 4002(b)(1)(E), (2)(M), May 22, 2008, 122 Stat. 1096, 1097; Pub. L. 110–246, § 4(a), title IV, § 4002(b)(1)(E), (2)(M), June 18, 2008, 122 Stat. 1664, 1857, 1858.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 131 (June 15, 1917, ch. 30, title X, § 2, 40 Stat. 228). Reference to persons causing, procuring, aiding or as- sisting was omitted as unnecessary as such persons are made principals by section 2 of this title. In view of definitions of department and agency in section 6 of this title, words ‘‘department or agency’’ in first paragraph were substituted for ‘‘executive depart- ment, or any bureau, commission, or office’’. Provision for 10 years’ imprisonment was reduced to 5 years to conform to punishment provision in section 505 of this title, covering an offense of like gravity. Minor changes in phraseology were also made. Page 132 TITLE 18—CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE § 507 Editorial Notes CODIFICATION Pub. L. 110–234 and Pub. L. 110–246 made identical amendments to this section. The amendments by Pub. L. 110–234 were repealed by section 4(a) of Pub. L. 110–246. AMENDMENTS 2008—Subsec. (c)(1)(B). Pub. L. 110–246, § 4002(b)(1)(E), (2)(M), substituted ‘‘supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits’’ for ‘‘food stamps’’. 1996—Pub. L. 104–208 reenacted section catchline without change and amended text generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: ‘‘Whoever falsely makes, forges, counterfeits, muti- lates, or alters the seal of any department or agency of the United States; or ‘‘Whoever knowingly uses, affixes, or impresses any such fraudulently made, forged, counterfeited, muti- lated, or altered seal to or upon any certificate, instru- ment, commission, document, or paper, of any descrip- tion; or ‘‘Whoever, with fraudulent intent, possesses any such seal, knowing the same to have been so falsely made, forged, counterfeited, mutilated, or altered— ‘‘Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.’’ 1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted ‘‘fined under this title’’ for ‘‘fined not more than $5,000’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2008 AMENDMENT Amendment of this section and repeal of Pub. L. 110–234 by Pub. L. 110–246 effective May 22, 2008, the date of enactment of Pub. L. 110–234, except as other- wise provided, see section 4 of Pub. L. 110–246, set out as an Effective Date note under section 8701 of Title 7, Agriculture. Amendment by section 4002(b)(1)(E), (2)(M) of Pub. L. 110–246 effective Oct. 1, 2008, see section 4407 of Pub. L. 110–246, set out as a note under section 1161 of Title 2, The Congress. § 507. Ship’s papers Whoever falsely makes, forges, counterfeits, or alters any instrument in imitation of or pur- porting to be, an abstract or official copy or cer- tificate of the documentation of any vessel, or a certificate of ownership, pass, or clearance, granted for any vessel, under the authority of the United States, or a permit, debenture, or other official document granted by any officer of the customs by virtue of his office; or Whoever utters, publishes, or passes, or at- tempts to utter, publish, or pass, as true, any such false, forged, counterfeited, or falsely al- tered instrument, abstract, official copy, certifi- cate, pass, clearance, permit, debenture, or other official document herein specified, know- ing the same to be false, forged, counterfeited, or falsely altered, with an intent to defraud— Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both. (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 714; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(H), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147; Pub. L. 109–304, § 17(d)(2), Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1707.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 129 (Mar. 4, 1909, ch. 321, § 72, 35 Stat. 1101). The words ‘‘passport’’ and ‘‘sea letter’’ were omitted as obsolete, in view of the Presidential proclamation of April 10, 1815, discontinuing the use of such passports and sea letters. Mandatory punishment provisions were rephrased in the alternative. Minor changes of phraseology were made. Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2006—Pub. L. 109–304 in first par. substituted ‘‘docu- mentation of any vessel’’ for ‘‘recording, registry, or enrollment of any vessel, in the office of any collector of the customs, or a license to any vessel for carrying on the coasting trade or fisheries of the United States’’ and struck out ‘‘collector or other’’ after ‘‘granted by any’’ and in second par. struck out ‘‘license,’’ after ‘‘certificate,’’. 1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted ‘‘fined under this title’’ for ‘‘fined not more than $1,000’’. Executive Documents TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS All offices of collector of customs, comptroller of cus- toms, surveyor of customs, and appraiser of merchan- dise in Bureau of Customs of Department of the Treas- ury to which appointments were required to be made by President with advice and consent of Senate ordered abolished, with such offices to be terminated not later than Dec. 31, 1966, by Reorg. Plan No. 1 of 1965, eff. May 25, 1965, 30 F.R. 7035, 79 Stat. 1317, set out in the Appen- dix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employ- ees. All functions of offices eliminated were already vested in Secretary of the Treasury by Reorg. Plan No. 26 of 1950, eff. July 31, 1950, 15 F.R. 4935, 64 Stat. 1280, set out in the Appendix to Title 5. § 508. Transportation requests of Government Whoever falsely makes, forges, or counterfeits in whole or in part, any form or request in simil- itude of the form or request provided by the Government for requesting a common carrier to furnish transportation on account of the United States or any department or agency thereof, or knowingly alters any form or request provided by the Government for requesting a common carrier to furnish transportation on account of the United States or any department or agency thereof; or Whoever knowingly passes, utters, publishes, or sells, or attempts to pass, utter, publish, or sell, any such false, forged, counterfeited, or al- tered form or request— Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both. (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 715; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(K), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Based on title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., § 146 (Dec. 11, 1926, ch. 2, § 1, 44 Stat. 917). References to persons causing, procuring, aiding or assisting were omitted as unnecessary as such persons are made principals by section 2 of this title. Also, in first paragraph, word ‘‘agency’’ was sub- stituted for ‘‘branch’’, in view of definitions of depart- ment and agency in section 6 of this title. Words ‘‘upon conviction’’ in last paragraph were omitted as surplusage since punishment cannot be im- posed until a conviction is secured. Minor changes of phraseology were also made. Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1994—Pub. L. 103–322 substituted ‘‘fined under this title’’ for ‘‘fined not more than $5,000’’.