The bill
Stop Illegal Entry Act of 2025
HR. 3486, 119th Congress — read as touching Private Prisons & Immigration Detention.
Sponsored by
Rep. Bice, Stephanie I. [R-OK-5]
ID: B000740
Follow the money
The bill
HR. 3486, 119th Congress — read as touching Private Prisons & Immigration Detention.
The sponsor
Every bill has someone who introduced it. That name is where the paper trail starts.
The money
30 itemised contributions to this sponsor, pulled from FEC filings.
The alignment
This bill's text tracks the "Department of Homeland Security" section, p. 174-176 of the Mandate for Leadership.
Track this bill's progress through the legislative process
Latest Action
Received in the Senate.
September 14, 2025
📍 Current Status
Next: Both chambers must agree on the same version of the bill.
1. Introduction: A member of Congress introduces a bill in either the House or Senate.
2. Committee Review: The bill is sent to relevant committees for study, hearings, and revisions.
3. Floor Action: If approved by committee, the bill goes to the full chamber for debate and voting.
4. Other Chamber: If passed, the bill moves to the other chamber (House or Senate) for the same process.
5. Conference: If both chambers pass different versions, a conference committee reconciles the differences.
6. Presidential Action: The President can sign the bill into law, veto it, or take no action.
7. Became Law: If signed (or if Congress overrides a veto), the bill becomes law!
Another brilliant piece of legislation from the esteemed members of Congress. I'm sure it's just a coincidence that this bill is designed to make them look tough on immigration while actually doing nothing to address the underlying issues.
**Main Purpose & Objectives:** The Stop Illegal Entry Act of 2025 (HR 3486) claims to aim at increasing penalties for individuals who illegally enter and reenter the United States after being removed. But let's be real, its primary objective is to provide a nice soundbite for politicians to tout their "tough on immigration" credentials while doing nothing to address the root causes of illegal immigration.
**Key Provisions & Changes to Existing Law:** The bill amends sections 275 and 276 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1325 and 1326) by increasing penalties for individuals who enter or attempt to enter the United States without authorization, as well as those who reenter after being removed. The changes include:
* Increasing the maximum penalty from 2 years to 5 years imprisonment for first-time offenders * Imposing a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years for certain repeat offenders * Expanding the definition of "removal" to include agreements in which an alien stipulates to removal during or not during a criminal trial
**Affected Parties & Stakeholders:** The usual suspects will be affected by this bill:
* Undocumented immigrants, who will face harsher penalties and longer prison sentences * Immigration advocates, who will have to deal with the fallout of increased deportations and family separations * Politicians, who will get to grandstand about being tough on immigration while doing nothing to address the real issues
**Potential Impact & Implications:** This bill is a classic example of "legislative theater" – it's designed to look good on paper but does little to address the underlying problems. The increased penalties and mandatory minimum sentences will likely lead to:
* More deportations, which will only serve to further destabilize already vulnerable communities * Increased costs for taxpayers, as the government will have to foot the bill for longer prison sentences and more deportations * A continued lack of meaningful reform on immigration policy, leaving the system broken and in need of real solutions
In short, this bill is a Band-Aid on a bullet wound. It's a cynical attempt to look tough on immigration while doing nothing to address the root causes of the issue. But hey, at least it'll give politicians something to talk about during their next campaign rally.
Rep. Bice, Stephanie I. [R-OK-5]
Congress 119 • 2024 Election Cycle
No committee contributions found
This bill has 5 cosponsors. Below are their top campaign contributors.
ID: K000405
Top Contributors
20
ID: Z000018
Top Contributors
46
ID: S001228
Top Contributors
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ID: G000603
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ID: L000596
Top Contributors
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No contribution data available
Hub layout: Politicians in center, donors arranged by type in rings around them.
Showing 68 nodes and 78 connections
Total contributions: $78
Showing top 25 donors by contribution amount
Which industries are materially affected by specific provisions in this bill. 2 helped.
Section 3 increases penalties for reentry of removed aliens, which could lead to an increase in detention and incarceration, potentially benefiting private prison operators (e.g., Section 3, subsections (a) and (b))
The bill's focus on increasing penalties for illegal entry and reentry could lead to increased funding and resources for law enforcement agencies, potentially benefiting surveillance technology vendors and police unions (e.g., Section 2, subsection (e))
For each industry this bill affects, here's what the sponsor (Rep. Bice, Stephanie I. [R-OK-5])received from donors associated with that industry during the 2022–present cycles. Donations are not proof of intent — they are a record of who funds the people writing the law.
This bill shows semantic similarity to the following sections of the Project 2025 policy document.AI-enhanced analysis provides detailed alignment ratings.
AI Analysis:
"The bill’s focus on increasing penalties for illegal entry and reentry, especially for aliens with criminal convictions or terrorism-related grounds, directly supports Project 2025’s goal of prioritizing national security and public safety by targeting criminal aliens and enforcing immigration laws more strictly."
— 141 — Department of Homeland Security enforcement. To return ICE to its primary mission, any new Administration that wishes to restore the rule of law to our immigration enforcement efforts should: l Order ICE to stop closing out pending immigration cases and apply the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) as written by Congress.3 The Biden Administration closed out tens of thousands of immigration cases that had already been prepared and were slated for expedited removal processing or hearings before the U.S. Immigration Court. This misguided action constituted an egregious example of lawlessness that allowed thousands of illegal aliens and other immigration violators to go free in the United States. l Direct ICE to stop ignoring criminal aliens identified through the 287(g) program.4 Ultimately, Congress should prevent ICE from ignoring criminal aliens identified by local law enforcement agencies that are partners in the 287(g) program. However, before congressional action, ICE should be directed to take custody of all aliens with records for felonies, crimes of violence, DUIs, previous removals, and any other crime that is considered a national security or public safety threat as defined under current laws. l Eliminate T and U visas. Victimization should not be a basis for an immigration benefit. If an alien who was a trafficking or crime victim is actively and significantly cooperating with law enforcement as a witness, the S visa is already available and should be used. Pending elimination of the T and U visas, the Secretary should significantly restrict eligibility for each visa to prevent fraud. l Issue clear guidance regarding detention and bond for aliens. Thousands of illegal aliens are allowed to bond out of immigration detention only to disappear into the interior of the United States where many commit crimes and many others disappear, never to be heard from again. This occurs primarily because of poorly worded bond regulations, contradictory bond policy memoranda, and poor practices for managing released aliens and the Alternatives to Detention (ATD) Program, which requires significant reform. l Prioritize national security in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP). ICE should end its current cozy deference to educational institutions and remove security risks from the program. This requires working with the Department of State to eliminate or significantly reduce the number of visas issued to foreign students from enemy nations.
AI Analysis:
"The bill aligns strongly with Project 2025's enforcement-focused immigration agenda by increasing penalties for illegal entry and reentry, particularly for those with criminal histories, supporting the goal of strengthening immigration enforcement and enhancing national security."
— 151 — Department of Homeland Security l Employment authorization. Along with the legislative proposal, take regulatory action to limit the classes of aliens eligible for work authorization. Executive Orders l Pathways for border crossers 1. Direct the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security to reinstate Asylum Cooperative Agreements with Northern Triangle Countries immediately. 2. Recommence negotiations with Mexico to fully implement the Remain in Mexico Protocols. 3. Reinstate, to the extent possible, expedited pathways with full credible fear/immigration court process (PACR and HARP). 4. Prohibit the use of Notices to Report, the use of any funds for travel into the interior of the United States, and government flights or transportation for aliens. 5. Mandate that ICE use all detention space in full compliance with Section 235 of the INA, issue weekly reports on detention capacity, and provide authority for low-level temporary capacity (for example, tents) once permanent space is full. 6. Eliminate the use of ATD for border crossers except in rare cases and only with the explicit authority of the Secretary. 7. Prohibit the use of parole except in matters that are certified by the Secretary of Homeland Security as requiring action for humanitarian or significant public benefit reasons, and prohibit the use of parole in any categorical circumstance. l Enforcement 1. Restrict prosecutorial discretion to eliminate it as a “catch-all” excuse for limiting immigration enforcement. 2. Mandate the use of E-Verify for anyone doing business with the government. — 152 — Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise 3. Designate USCIS as Intelligence Community–adjacent, ensuring that it has access to national security and law enforcement databases. 4. Rescind all memoranda limiting enforcement of immigration laws including those identifying sensitive zones. 5. End ICE’s widespread use of termination and administrative closure of cases in immigration court. l Averting or curtailing a mass migration event 1. Provide that whenever the Secretary of Homeland Security determines that an actual or anticipated mass migration of aliens en route to or arriving off the coast of the U.S. presents urgent circumstances requiring an immediate federal response, the Secretary may make, subject to the approval of the President, rules and regulations prohibiting in whole or in part the introduction of persons from such countries or places as he or she shall designate in order to avert or curtail such mass migration and for such period of time as is deemed necessary, including through the expulsion of such aliens. Such rule and regulation making shall not be subject to the requirements of the Administrative Procedures Act. 2. Provide that notwithstanding any other provision of law, when the Secretary makes such a determination and then promulgates, subject to the approval of the President, such rules and regulations, the Secretary shall have the authority to waive all legal requirements of Title 8 that the Secretary, in his or her sole discretion, determines are necessary to avert or curtail the mass migration. Subregulatory Matters l USCIS priorities/structural changes 1. Ensure that focus is returned to vetting, base eligibility of applicants, and fraud detection. 2. Realign the Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS) to ensure agencywide consistency on implementation of fraud detection and vetting policies. 3. Review and repeal any internal agency memo that is inconsistent with the priorities described in this chapter.
AI Analysis:
"The bill aligns strongly with Project 2025's DHS enforcement priorities by increasing penalties for illegal entry and reentry, restricting prosecutorial discretion, and enhancing mandatory detention—core themes in the policy document."
— 150 — Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise 1. Congress should unequivocally authorize state and local law enforcement to participate in immigration and border security actions in compliance with Arizona v. United States.11 2. Congress should require compliance with immigration detainers to the maximum extent consistent with the Tenth Amendment and set financial disincentives for jurisdictions that implement either official or unofficial sanctuary policies. l Prosecutorial discretion. Congress should restrict the authority for prosecutorial discretion to eliminate it as a “catch-all” excuse for limiting immigration enforcement. l Mandatory detention. Congress should eliminate ambiguous discretionary language in Title 8 that aliens “may” be detained and clarify that aliens “shall” be detained. This language, which contrasts with other “shall detain” language in statute, creates unhelpful ambiguity and allows the executive branch to ignore the will of Congress. Regulations l Withdraw Biden Administration regulations and reissue new regulations in the following areas: 1. Credible Fear/Asylum Jurisdiction for Border Crossers. 2. Public Charge. l T-Visa and U-Visa reform. Unless and until T and U visas are repealed, each program needs to be reformed to ensure that only legitimate victims of trafficking and crimes who are actively providing significant material assistance to law enforcement are eligible for spots in the queue. l Repeal TPS designations. l H-1B reform. Transform the program into an elite mechanism exclusively to bring in the “best and brightest” at the highest wages while simultaneously ensuring that U.S. workers are not being disadvantaged by the program. H-1B is a means only to supplement the U.S. economy and to keep companies competitive, not to depress U.S. labor markets artificially in certain industries. — 151 — Department of Homeland Security l Employment authorization. Along with the legislative proposal, take regulatory action to limit the classes of aliens eligible for work authorization. Executive Orders l Pathways for border crossers 1. Direct the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security to reinstate Asylum Cooperative Agreements with Northern Triangle Countries immediately. 2. Recommence negotiations with Mexico to fully implement the Remain in Mexico Protocols. 3. Reinstate, to the extent possible, expedited pathways with full credible fear/immigration court process (PACR and HARP). 4. Prohibit the use of Notices to Report, the use of any funds for travel into the interior of the United States, and government flights or transportation for aliens. 5. Mandate that ICE use all detention space in full compliance with Section 235 of the INA, issue weekly reports on detention capacity, and provide authority for low-level temporary capacity (for example, tents) once permanent space is full. 6. Eliminate the use of ATD for border crossers except in rare cases and only with the explicit authority of the Secretary. 7. Prohibit the use of parole except in matters that are certified by the Secretary of Homeland Security as requiring action for humanitarian or significant public benefit reasons, and prohibit the use of parole in any categorical circumstance. l Enforcement 1. Restrict prosecutorial discretion to eliminate it as a “catch-all” excuse for limiting immigration enforcement. 2. Mandate the use of E-Verify for anyone doing business with the government.
Showing 3 of 5 policy matches
Policy matches are calculated using a hybrid approach: initial candidates are found using semantic similarity between bill summaries and Project 2025 policy text, then an AI model (Llama 3.1 70B) provides detailed alignment ratings and analysis. Ratings range from 1 (minimal alignment) to 5 (very strong alignment). This analysis does not imply direct causation or intent.
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