{"id":231358,"date":"2025-12-04T13:32:33","date_gmt":"2025-12-04T18:32:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/?p=231358"},"modified":"2025-12-04T14:13:19","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T19:13:19","slug":"porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"NJ Congressman Pushes To Make Porch Piracy A Federal Crime"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"custom_featured_image\" style=\"display:none;\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" src=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-800x533.jpg\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" style=\"margin-bottom: 15px;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-800x533.jpg 800w, https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-768x511.jpg 768w, https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-585x390.jpg 585w, https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-263x175.jpg 263w, https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/div><div id=\"custom_category\" style=\"display:none;\">News<\/div><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A huge holiday disappointment unfolds when you order all your presents for your partner, parents, dogs, friends, and grandma, get the notification it was delivered, and come home to see no boxes, envelopes, or bags outside your door. Now, porch pirates could be receiving more than coal under the tree during future holiday seasons. A New Jersey Congressman is working to crack down on porch piracy by making it a federal crime, increasing the punishment for thieves across the country. <\/span><b><i>Here\u2019s what we know about the punishment for stealing packages right now and what the possible Porch Pirates Act entails.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-231360 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-800x533.jpg 800w, https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-768x511.jpg 768w, https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-585x390.jpg 585w, https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates-263x175.jpg 263w, https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Quick Facts On Porch Piracy\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The ease of online shopping comes with the stress of shipping and delivery. As of November 2025, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.safewise.com\/blog\/metro-areas-porch-theft\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">104 million total packages<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> have been stolen in the United States, and almost half of all Americans have been victims of a porch pirate. In 2024, shoppers lost nearly $16 billion in stolen goods that they had already paid for. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/gottheimer.house.gov\/posts\/release-on-cyber-monday-gottheimer-announces-bipartisan-legislation-to-combat-porch-pirates-during-holiday-shopping-season\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">New Jersey Congressman Josh Gottheimer\u2019s team<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> looked at a three-month period in 2024 and found more than 190,000 New Jersey residents had a package stolen from them. Not the kind of holiday surprise you want to unwrap.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><em>Read More:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/bergen-county-girl-scout-gold-award-yashvi-rateshwar-melodies4memory\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">This Bergen County Girl Scout Won an Award for Her Work With Senior Citizens<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Back in 2020, the New Jersey State Assembly amended current theft laws to address porch piracy. Called the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/pub.njleg.gov\/bills\/2020\/A4000\/3870_I1.HTM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Defense Against Porch Pirates Act<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, the bill made stealing packages a felony offense. Right now, that offense can carry a potential three to five-year prison term and up to a $15,000 fine.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>The Porch Pirates Act<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Congressman Gottheimer announced bipartisan legislation in Ridgewood, NJ, on Cyber Monday, December 1, proposing serious punishments for stealing packages. The goal of the Porch Pirates Act is to combat package theft not just in New Jersey, but across the country. It would:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Make stealing a package delivered by a private carrier (think UPS, Amazon, FedEx, etc.) a federal crime. Right now, that protection only applies to mail and packages delivered by the United States Postal Service.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Apply federal penalties, such as fines and imprisonment up to three, five, or ten years. Penalties will depend on the value, method, and circumstance of theft.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Give the FBI, Department of Justice, and federal task forces full authority to investigate any porch piracy theft of private carrier packages.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Create a uniform national baseline, clarifying existing criminal statutes, including delivered packages, combating porch piracy, and setting standard penalties without preempting individual state laws.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Extend interstate commerce protection to the final delivery point, including all the way to a front porch, rather than only protecting packages in transit.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" style=\"background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);\" data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DRxm-NQEx-I\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\">\n<div style=\"padding: 16px;\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;\">View this post on Instagram<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\">\n<div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"margin-left: auto;\">\n<div style=\"width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\">\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;\"><a style=\"color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DRxm-NQEx-I\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">A post shared by Rep Josh Gottheimer (@repjoshg)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThere\u2019s a literal Grinch that tears through neighborhoods, stealing away Christmas presents and essentials from grandparents and children alike \u2014 right off their own front porch when a package arrives,\u201d says Congressman Gottheimer. \u201cWe can\u2019t let the holidays be snatched away from us in broad daylight by a bunch of porch pirates. We will fight to ensure gifts stay right where they belong: with the families who work hard to buy them, with the loved ones they thought of when they paid for them, and within the homes celebrating their faith, love, and family together this holiday season. That is what our Jersey Values are about: protecting the people we cherish most.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On top of his fight against those porch Grinches, Gottheimer is pushing for retailers to figure out why almost <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.chamberofcommerce.org\/package-theft-statistics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">25% of families<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> don\u2019t receive refunds for stolen packages and to take steps to fix that process.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The congressman was joined by Bergen County Sheriff Anthony Cureton, who added, \u201cPorch pirates thrive on opportunity, and I\u2019m asking our residents to help take that opportunity away, especially during the delivery season. Stay vigilant, use secure delivery options, and report any suspicious activity to keep our community safe.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The bill still needs to be passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, then by the President, before becoming a law.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><em>See More:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/news\/daylight-savings-bill-new-jersey-2025\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">New Daylight Savings Time Bill Advances in New Jersey: What to Know<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Follow @thelocalgirlhq on <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/thelocalgirlhq\/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instagram<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> + <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@thelocalgirlhq?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">TikTok<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for the latest updates on Hoboken, Montclair, Bergen County, and more, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.myflodesk.com\/xdt5qdr3st\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sign up for our weekly newsletter here<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that shares everything you missed each week, and check out our <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/calendar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">events calendar<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which has over 100+ events weekly to peruse.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a class=\"button\" href=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/news\/\">News<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NewsA huge holiday disappointment unfolds when you order all your presents for your partner, parents, dogs, friends, and grandma, get the notification&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":390,"featured_media":231360,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[9479,9660,9593],"tags":[9707,9783],"class_list":["post-231358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-events-news","category-news","category-local-girl-rss-feed","tag-news","tag-tlg"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.6 (Yoast SEO v27.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>NJ Congressman Pushes To Make Porch Piracy A Federal Crime - The Bergen County Girl<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Stolen packages from your porch are a frustrating sight, so a New Jersey congressman looks to make it a federal crime. Here are the details.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NJ Congressman Pushes To Make Porch Piracy A Federal Crime\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Stolen packages from your porch are a frustrating sight, so a New Jersey congressman looks to make it a federal crime. Here are the details.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Bergen County Girl\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-12-04T18:32:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-04T19:13:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/thelocalgirl.com\/bergen\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/12\/Porch-Pirates.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"666\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Erin Lanahan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Erin Lanahan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Erin Lanahan\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a7255d3fa506660a49a28b5e9b795319\"},\"headline\":\"NJ Congressman Pushes To Make Porch Piracy A Federal Crime\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-04T18:32:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-04T19:13:19+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":740,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/Porch-Pirates.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"News\",\"The Local Girl\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Events + News\",\"News\",\"The Local Girl\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\\\/\",\"name\":\"NJ Congressman Pushes To Make Porch Piracy A Federal Crime - The Bergen County Girl\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/porch-piracy-act-new-jersey-2025\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/5\\\/2025\\\/12\\\/Porch-Pirates.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-12-04T18:32:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-04T19:13:19+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thelocalgirl.com\\\/bergen\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a7255d3fa506660a49a28b5e9b795319\"},\"description\":\"Stolen packages from your porch are a frustrating sight, so a New Jersey congressman looks to make it a federal crime. 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