ECCHO Act
Sponsored By: Senator Grassley, Chuck [R-IA]
Introduced
Summary
The ECCHO Act would create a new federal crime banning the coercion of minors to commit harm. It defines online tactics like doxxing and swatting, sets penalties for a range of violent and nonviolent coercive acts, and weaves the new offense into existing child-exploitation laws.
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- Children and families: Minors (under 18) coerced through the mail, any facility of interstate or foreign commerce, or on U.S. special maritime and territorial jurisdiction would be covered. The law lists harms including urging suicide, killing, serious bodily injury, arson, or forcing harm to animals.
- Prosecutors and penalties: Federal prosecutors would have a standalone offense with penalties up to life imprisonment for coercion that causes or attempts death and up to 30 years for other listed harms.
- Legal definitions and enforcement reach: The bill inserts section 2261C into Chapter 110A, broadens the federal definition of child exploitation in the PROTECT Our Children Act, and updates multiple Title 18 cross-references to include online coercion.
It also includes a severability clause to keep the remaining provisions effective if part of the law is struck down.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.
Add online coercion to child laws
If enacted, the bill would add the new coercion offense into multiple federal child-protection laws and into the PROTECT Our Children Act definition of "child exploitation." Agencies that collect data, run grants, or investigate child exploitation would explicitly treat online coercion like doxxing and swatting as part of the child-exploitation landscape. The change would take effect when the bill is enacted.
New federal crime for coercing children
If enacted, the bill would create a new federal crime for intentionally coercing a minor by mail, the internet, or other interstate means. The coercion would cover forcing a child to attempt suicide or kill someone, hurt people or animals, commit arson, or carry out certain online harms like doxxing, swatting, or false threat reports. The bill would define key terms such as "coerce," "doxxing," "swatting," and "minor." Penalties would include fines and long prison terms—including life for coercion tied to death, and up to 30 years for other covered acts.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Grassley, Chuck [R-IA]
IA • R
Cosponsors
Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
IL • D
Sponsored 12/9/2025
Amy Klobuchar
MN • D
Sponsored 12/9/2025
Sen. Cornyn, John [R-TX]
TX • R
Sponsored 12/9/2025
Sen. Graham, Lindsey [R-SC]
SC • R
Sponsored 12/9/2025
Sen. Shaheen, Jeanne [D-NH]
NH • D
Sponsored 12/17/2025
Sen. Moody, Ashley [R-FL]
FL • R
Sponsored 2/11/2026
Sen. Blackburn, Marsha [R-TN]
TN • R
Sponsored 2/11/2026
Sen. Cruz, Ted [R-TX]
TX • R
Sponsored 2/26/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov