Closing Bankruptcy Loopholes for Child Predators Act of 2026

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 8589 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 8589 To amend title 11 of the United States Code to address misuse of bankruptcy proceedings in cases of child sex abuse, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES April 29, 2026 Ms. Ross (for herself, Ms. Tenney, Mrs. Sykes, and Ms. De La Cruz) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend title 11 of the United States Code to address misuse of bankruptcy proceedings in cases of child sex abuse, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Closing Bankruptcy Loopholes for Child Predators Act of 2026''. SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS. (a) Amendments.--Title 11, United States Code, is amended-- (1) in section 101-- (A) by redesignating paragraphs (51B), (51C), and (51D) as paragraphs (51C), (51D), and (51E), respectively, and (B) by inserting after paragraph (51A) the following: ``(51B) The term `sexual abuse of a child' means any act that-- ``(A) constitutes a violation of-- ``(i) section 1589, 1590, 1591, 2241(c), 2242, 2243, 2251, 2251A, 2252, 2252A, 2260, 2421, 2422, or 2423, 2258, or 2258A, of title 18; ``(ii) section 20341 of title 34; or ``(iii) a non-Federal law that is similar to a law described in clause (i); and ``(B) by reason of the conduct prohibited, a person who, while a minor, was aggrieved.'';''; (2) in section 1109-- (A) by adding at the end of subsection (b) the following: ``In any case in which a claim is filed against the debtor arising out of the alleged sexual abuse of a child, the court shall hold a conference within 60 days of the deadline by which