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S. 497

U.S. Senate•In Senate Committee

Summary

S. 497, the FENCE Act, was introduced in the Senate on Feb 10, 2025 by Sen. Bill Hagerty (R). It was referred to Finance, and last saw action on Feb 10, 2025: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

Record

Text

S. 497 has no co-sponsors and has not gone to a roll call.

sb497/introduced-in-senate.txt
119 S497 IS: Fixing Exemptions for Networks Choosing to Enable Illegal Migration Act
 U.S. Senate
 2025-02-10
 text/xml
 EN
 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
 II  119th CONGRESS  1st Session  S. 497  IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES   February 10, 2025   Mr. Hagerty  introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the  Committee on Finance    A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to modify eligibility for 501(c)(3) status.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   Fixing Exemptions for Networks Choosing to Enable Illegal Migration Act   or the   FENCE Act  .
2.
Organizations harboring aliens unlawfully present in the United States
(a)
In general
Paragraph (3) of  section 501(c)  of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended—
(1)
by striking  animals, no part  and inserting “animals—
(A)
no part
 ,
(2)
by striking  individual, no substantial part  and inserting “individual,
(B)
no substantial part
 ,
(3)
by striking  subsection (h)), and which  and inserting “subsection (h)),
(C)
which
 ,
(4)
by striking the period at the end and inserting  , and , and
(5)
by adding at the end the following:
(D)
which does not engage in a pattern or practice of providing financial assistance, benefits, services, or other material support to individuals which such corporation, community chest, fund, or foundation knows or reasonably should know to be unlawfully present in the United States.
 Subparagraph (D) shall not be construed to require proof of citizenship or verification of an individual’s immigration status to be presented, or to require a religious organization to act in violation of its religious beliefs.  .
(b)
Effective date
The amendments made by this section shall take effect upon the date of the enactment of this Act.

Tracker

The tracker indicates the progress of this legislation as it moves through the legislative process.

  1. Introduced2025-02-10
  2. Passed Senate
  3. Passed House
  4. Conference
  5. To President
  6. Became Law

CRS Summary

The summaries are the Congressional Research Service’s, one per stage. Read them in full.

Introduced in Senate Feb 10, 2025

sb497/introduced-in-senate.md

Shown Here:
Introduced in Senate (02/10/2025)

Fixing Exemptions for Networks Choosing to Enable Illegal Migration Act or the FENCE Act

This bill denies federal tax-exempt status under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 501(c)(3) to an organization that engages in a pattern or practice of providing financial assistance, benefits, services, or other material support to individuals that such organization knows or reasonably should know are unlawfully present in the United States. However, the bill does not require an organization to verify an individual’s citizenship or immigration status, or act in violation of religious beliefs.

As background, an organization may be exempt from federal income tax under IRC Section 501(c)(3) if it is organized and operated exclusively (1) for religious, charitable, scientific, literary, or educational purposes; (2) for testing for public safety; (3) for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals; or (4) to foster national or international amateur sports competition (subject to limitations). However, under current law, a tax-exempt organization may not be organized for an illegal purpose or engage in substantial illegal activity.

Sponsors

Sen. Bill Hagerty (R) sponsors S. 497 alone.

Bill Hagerty

Sen. · R–TN · Sponsor

Committees

S. 497 went before 1 committee: Finance.

Finance
Finance
Referred To · Feb 10, 2025 · 902 Bills

Actions

S. 497 has taken 2 actions since Feb 10, 2025.

ChamberAction
Feb 10, 2025
Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.Finance Committee
Feb 10, 2025
—
Introduced in Senate

Votes

S. 497 has not gone to a roll call.

Titles

S. 497 goes by 4 titles, 2 of them short titles.

  • FENCE Act — Display Title
  • FENCE Act — Short Title(s) as Introduced
  • Fixing Exemptions for Networks Choosing to Enable Illegal Migration Act — Short Title(s) as Introduced
  • A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to modify eligibility for 501(c)(3) status. — Official Title as Introduced

Classification

The Congressional Research Service files S. 497 under Taxation, one of its 31 policy areas.

CRS Subjects

CRS assigns every bill one policy area from its 31; S. 497’s is Taxation.

s497/policy-areas.txt
TaxationAgriculture and FoodAnimalsArmed Forces and National SecurityArts, Culture, ReligionCivil Rights and Liberties, Minority IssuesCommerceCongressCrime and Law EnforcementEconomics and Public FinanceEducationEmergency ManagementEnergyEnvironmental ProtectionFamiliesFinance and Financial SectorForeign Trade and International FinanceGovernment Operations and PoliticsHealthHousing and Community DevelopmentImmigrationInternational AffairsLabor and EmploymentLawNative AmericansPublic Lands and Natural ResourcesScience, Technology, CommunicationsSocial WelfareSports and RecreationTransportation and Public WorksWater Resources Development

Source: congress.gov · legiscan.com