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HR 1730 113th Congress House

Cell Phone Theft Prevention Act of 2013

Official title: To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit mobile service providers from providing service on mobile devices that have been reported stolen, to requir… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit mobile service providers from providing service on mobile devices that have been reported stolen, to require such providers to give consumers the ability to remotely delete data from mobile devices, to prohibit the alteration or removal of mobile device identification numbers, and for other purposes.

Introduced: April 25, 2013 See on congress.gov
Science, Technology, Communications Crimes against propertyCriminal justice information and recordsGovernment information and archivesTelephone and wireless communication
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This bill died when the 113th Congress ended
It never became law before the 113th Congress (2013–2014) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Apr 26, 2013
Referred to the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology.
Apr 25, 2013
Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Apr 25, 2013
Introduced in House
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 Latest action April 26, 2013

Referred to the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Cell Phone Theft Prevention Act of 2013 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit a provider of commercial mobile or commercial mobile data service from providing service on a mobile device that has been reported to such provider as stolen: (1) by the person who holds the account with respect to such service, or (2) by another service provider receiving a report that the device has been stolen.

Requires service providers receiving a report that a device has been stolen to inform all other providers.

Directs service providers to make available to the account holders the capability of deleting, from a remote location, all information that was placed on a mobile device after its manufacture.

Prohibits the manufacturing of a mobile device, or the importation of such a device into the United States for sale or resale to the public, unless the device is equipped with an identification number and configured with remote deletion capability.

Establishes criminal penalties for the alteration or removal of a mobile device identification number or for the knowing use, production, trafficking in, control, custody, or possession of hardware or software configured to engage in the alteration or removal of such numbers.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
 Cosponsors 2
All 2 Democratic 2
D
Cohen, Steve
Tennessee · May 6, 2013
 D
Norton, Eleanor Holmes
District of Columbia · Apr 25, 2013
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 1730: Cell Phone Theft Prevention Act of 2013. 113th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/113-HR-1730/
MLA
"H.R. 1730: Cell Phone Theft Prevention Act of 2013." 113th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/113-HR-1730/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 1730, 113th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/113-HR-1730/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 1730: Cell Phone Theft Prevention Act of 2013](https://openamerica.io/bill/113-HR-1730/)
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