AMENDMENT 544
Amendment: Section 2L2.1(a) is amended by deleting “9” and inserting in lieu thereof “11”.
Section 2L2.1(b) is amended by deleting:
"(1) If the defendant committed the offense other than for profit, decrease by 3 levels.",
and inserting in lieu thereof:
"(1) If the defendant committed the offense other than for profit, or the offense involved the smuggling, transporting, or harboring only of the defendant’s spouse or child (or both the defendant’s spouse and child), decrease by 3 levels.".
Section 2L2.1(b)(2) is amended in the column captioned “Increase in Level” by deleting “2” in subdivision (A) and inserting in lieu thereof “3”; by deleting “4” in subdivision (B) and inserting in lieu thereof “6”; and by deleting “6” subdivision (C) and inserting in lieu thereof “9”.
Section 2L2.1(b) is amended by inserting after subdivision (3) the following additional subdivision:
"(4) If the defendant committed any part of the instant offense after sustaining (A) a conviction for a felony immigration and naturalization offense, increase by 2 levels; or (B) two (or more) convictions for felony immigration and naturalization offenses, each such conviction arising out of a separate prosecution, increase by 4 levels.".
The Commentary to §2L2.1 captioned "Application Notes" is amended by deleting Note 1 as follows:
"1. ‘For profit’ means for financial gain or commercial advantage.",
and inserting in lieu thereof:
"1. For purposes of this guideline—
‘The defendant committed the offense other than for profit’ means that there was no payment or expectation of payment for the smuggling, transporting, or harboring of any of the unlawful aliens.
‘Immigration and naturalization offense’ means any offense covered by Chapter Two, Part L.
‘Child’ has the meaning set forth in section 101(b)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. § 1101(b)(1)).
‘Spouse’ has the meaning set forth in section 101(a)(35) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(35)).".
The Commentary to §2L2.1 captioned “Application Notes” is amended by inserting after Note 3 the following additional notes:
"4. Prior felony conviction(s) resulting in an adjustment under subsection (b)(4) are also counted for purposes of determining criminal history points pursuant to Chapter Four, Part A (Criminal History).
5. If the offense involved substantially more than 100 documents, an upward departure may be warranted.".
Section 2L2.2(a) is amended by deleting "6" and inserting in lieu thereof “8”.
Section 2L2.2(b) is amended by deleting "Characteristic" and inserting in lieu thereof "Characteristics"; and by inserting after subdivision (1) the following additional subdivision:
"(2) If the defendant committed any part of the instant offense after sustaining (A) a conviction for a felony immigration and naturalization offense, increase by 2 levels; or (B) two (or more) convictions for felony immigration and naturalization offenses, each such conviction arising out of a separate prosecution, increase by 4 levels.".
The Commentary to §2L2.2 captioned "Application Note" is amended by deleting "Note"
and inserting in lieu thereof "Notes"; by redesignating Note 1 as Note 2; and by inserting the following as the new Note 1:
"1. For purposes of this guideline—
‘Immigration and naturalization offense’ means any offense covered by Chapter Two, Part L.".
The Commentary to §2L2.2 captioned "Application Notes" is amended by inserting after Note 2, as redesignated, the following additional note:
"3. Prior felony conviction(s) resulting in an adjustment under subsection (b)(2) are also counted for purposes of determining criminal history points pursuant to Chapter Four, Part A (Criminal History).".
Reason for Amendment: This amendment implements section 211 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, Pub. L. 104-208, 110 Stat. 3009-569, which directs the Commission to amend the guidelines for offenses related to the fraudulent use of government-issued documents.
Effective Date: The effective date of this amendment is May 1, 1997.