National Guard Protective Zone Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The National Guard Protective Zone Act adds a federal criminal offense for conduct inside a clearly marked protective zone around a National Guard member serving under specified federal or state deployment authorities. A zone may extend no more than 15 feet from the Guard member and must be identified by warning, signage, tape, or another visible marker.
To violate the basic offense, a person must knowingly enter or remain in the marked zone with intent to impede, intimidate, or interfere with the Guard member's duties. The maximum penalty is one year of imprisonment. If the conduct includes physical contact, throwing or projecting an object or substance, or spitting on the Guard member, the maximum rises to five years. The bill preserves First Amendment activity conducted outside the marked protective zone.
Who Benefits and How
National Guard members on covered deployments benefit from a buffer against intentional obstruction, intimidation, and physical contact. Guard units and officials responsible for operations gain a defined federal enforcement tool. Demonstrators and journalists outside the protective zone benefit from an express statement preserving First Amendment activity beyond the marked boundary.
Who Bears the Burden and How
People who intentionally enter or remain inside a posted zone to interfere with a covered Guard member face arrest, prosecution, fines, and imprisonment. People who make physical contact, project objects or substances, or spit face the enhanced five-year maximum. Officials must visibly mark each protective zone, and federal investigators, prosecutors, defense counsel, and courts must determine knowledge, intent, boundary placement, deployment status, and whether aggravating conduct occurred.
Key Provisions
- Creates a federal offense for intentional interference inside a marked National Guard protective zone.
- Limits each protective zone to no more than 15 feet around the Guard member.
- Requires a warning, sign, tape, or other visible boundary marker.
- Requires proof that the person knowingly entered or remained with prohibited intent.
- Establishes a maximum one-year penalty for the basic offense.
- Increases the maximum to five years for physical contact, projected objects or substances, or spitting.
- Protects First Amendment activity conducted outside the marked zone.
- Applies only while the Guard member is serving under the deployment authorities specified in the bill.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Creates a federal criminal offense for knowingly entering or remaining in a clearly marked protective zone of no more than 15 feet around a deployed National Guard member with intent to impede, intimidate, or interfere, with enhanced penalties for physical contact.
Key Policy Areas
Criminal Law, National Guard, Public Demonstrations, Federal Law Enforcement, First Amendment
Primary Purpose
Creates a federal criminal offense for knowingly entering or remaining in a clearly marked protective zone of no more than 15 feet around a deployed National Guard member with intent to impede, intimidate, or interfere, with enhanced penalties for physical contact.
Policy Domains
Sections 2 and 3 National Guard protective-zone offense
Identified Gains
- National Guard service members on covered deployments
- National Guard personnel protection staff
- Civil-liberties advocates outside protective zones
- News organizations reporting outside protective zones
- Military families of deployed Guard members
Identified Costs
- Criminal defendants accused of protective-zone violations
- Protective-zone compliance officers
- Federal law-enforcement officers investigating zone violations
- Federal attorneys prosecuting protective-zone cases
- Federal courts hearing protective-zone cases
- Defense lawyers representing accused zone entrants
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeReferred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Introduced in House
Mrs. Biggs of South Carolina (for herself, Mr. DesJarlais, Mr. …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Demonstrators remaining outside protective zones, People engaging in aggravated contact with Guard members, People intentionally interfering inside protective zones
Positive-direction: Demonstrators remaining outside protective zones
Negative-direction: People engaging in aggravated contact with Guard members, People intentionally interfering inside protective zones
National Guard members on covered deployments, National Guard operational units
Federal courts hearing protective-zone cases, Protective-zone marking officials
Journalists remaining outside protective zones
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "guard_member"
- → National Guard member on a covered title 10 or title 32 deployment
- "zone_entrant"
- → Person knowingly entering or remaining in the marked protective zone
- "marking_official"
- → Official responsible for visibly marking a protective-zone boundary
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
A visibly marked area extending no more than 15 feet around a Guard member serving under a covered deployment authority.
Knowingly entering or remaining in the zone with intent to impede, intimidate, or interfere with the Guard member's duties.
Physical contact, throwing or projecting an object or substance, or spitting on the Guard member during the offense.
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology