US · guidelines
U.S.S.G. §2B2.3
Trespass
(a) Base Offense Level: 4
(b) Specific Offense Characteristics
(1) (Apply the greater) If—
(A) the trespass occurred (i) at a secure government facility; (ii) at a
nuclear energy facility; (iii) on a vessel or aircraft of the United
States; (iv) in a secure area of an airport or a seaport; (v) at a
residence; (vi) at Arlington National Cemetery or a cemetery under the control of the National Cemetery Administration; (vii) at
any restricted building or grounds; or (viii) on a computer system
used (I) to maintain or operate a critical infrastructure; or (II) by
or for a government entity in furtherance of the administration
of justice, national defense, or national security, increase by
2 levels; or
(B) the trespass occurred at the White House or its grounds, or the
Vice President’s official residence or its grounds, increase by
4 levels.
(2) If a dangerous weapon (including a firearm) was possessed, increase
by 2 levels.
(3) If (A) the offense involved invasion of a protected computer; and
(B) the loss resulting from the invasion (i) exceeded $2,500 but did not
exceed $6,500, increase by 1 level; or (ii) exceeded $6,500, increase by
the number of levels from the table in §2B1.1 (Theft, Property Destruction, and Fraud) corresponding to that amount.
(c) Cross Reference
(1) If the offense was committed with the intent to commit a felony offense, apply §2X1.1 (Attempt, Solicitation, or Conspiracy) in respect
to that felony offense, if the resulting offense level is greater than that
determined above.
Commentary
Statutory Provisions: 18 U.S.C. §§ 1030(a)(3), 1036, 2199; 38 U.S.C. § 2413; 42 U.S.C. § 7270b. For
additional statutory provision(s), see Appendix A (Statutory Index).
Application Notes:
1. Definitions.—For purposes of this guideline:
“Airport” has the meaning given that term in section 47102 of title 49, United States Code.
“Critical infrastructure” means systems and assets vital to national defense, national security, economic security, public health or safety, or any combination of those matters. A critical
infrastructure may be publicly or privately owned. Examples of critical infrastructures include
gas and oil production, storage, and delivery systems, water supply systems, telecommunications
networks, electrical power delivery systems, financing and banking systems, emergency services
(including medical, police, fire, and rescue services), transportation systems and services (including highways, mass transit, airlines, and airports), and government operations that provide essential services to the public.
“Felony offense” means any offense (federal, state, or local) punishable by imprisonment for a
term exceeding one year, whether or not a criminal charge was brought or a conviction was obtained.
“Firearm” and “dangerous weapon” are defined in the Commentary to §1B1.1 (Application
Instructions).
“Government entity” has the meaning given that term in 18 U.S.C. § 1030(e)(9).
“Protected computer” means a computer described in 18 U.S.C. § 1030(e)(2)(A) or (B).
“Restricted building or grounds” has the meaning given that term in 18 U.S.C. § 1752.
“Seaport” has the meaning given that term in 18 U.S.C. § 26.
2. Application of Subsection (b)(3).—Valuation of loss is discussed in §2B1.1 (Theft, Property
Destruction, and Fraud) and the Commentary to §2B1.1.
Background: Most trespasses punishable under federal law involve federal lands or property. The
trespass section provides an enhancement for offenses involving trespass on secure government installations (such as nuclear facilities) and other locations (such as airports and seaports) to protect a
significant federal interest. Additionally, an enhancement is provided for trespass at a residence.
History
Effective November 1, 1987. Amended effective November 1, 1989 (amendments 108 and 109); November 1, 1997 (amendment 551); November 1, 2001 (amendment 617); November 1, 2002 (amendment 637); Novem- ber 1, 2003 (amendment 654); November 1, 2007 (amendments 699 and 703); November 1, 2013 (amend- ment 777); November 1, 2015 (amendment 791); November 1, 2024 (amendment 827).
Provenance
- Source
- ussc.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-20
- Edition
- ussg-2024
- Content hash
97ad9de46f3a9fe6e10516e0cc42b5af6f958bc9dcbf9955cdc636dfdfd80d62
The link goes to the issuing authority’s own document — the one we read to produce this record. Where a source publishes whole titles rather than sections, your browser may need a moment to jump to the provision.
Unofficial copy of government-published law, reproduced from official sources with full provenance. Not an official publication; verify against official sources before relying on it in a filing. Records in the 'guidance' corpus, and only that corpus, are sub-regulatory (interpretive guidelines, survey procedures) and are not binding law. Validity bounds follow each jurisdiction's declared temporalBasis.