A U.S. Department of Justice proposal sent to Congress on Monday asks legislators for more stringent copyright laws that would include punishments for attempted infringement and forfeitures similar to anti-drug and anti-mafia legislation.

The suggested changes to current law would strengthen law enforcement's ability to investigate and prosecute digital pirates as well as casual copyright infringers. The proposal would make any attempt to infringe on a copyright a crime, increases penalties against repeat offenders, augments the rules for seizing property of those accused of crimes, and adds significant penalties for copyright and trademark infringement that could pose a danger to public safety, such as counterfeit pharmaceuticals.

"Because intellectual property is critical not only to our economy but also to the public's health and safety, the Attorney General is strongly committed to the protection of intellectual property rights, the safeguarding of our citizens, and the punishment of those who violate the law," Richard Hertling, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, stated in a letter attached to the proposal (PDF via PolitechBot).

The U.S. government has taken an increasingly stronger role in supporting the music and movie industries' claims against infringers. On the same day the proposal was sent to Congress, the U.S. DOJ announced its 50th guilty plea in the prosecution of a large online music piracy ring. In 2006, the US DOJ arrested 40 percent more people for intellectual property crimes than the previous year, the agency said in a statement. While the proposal does not specifically mention digital and computer crimes, the majority of the agency's prosecutions appear to be related to digital music and movies.

Those industries continue to fight to curtail copying by consumers. The Recording Industry Association of America has sued thousands of U.S. citizens for the sharing of copyrighted songs. However, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which was intended to curtail digital pirates, has instead been largely misused to protect companies against competition and quash free speech.

The call for stronger legislation comes as the U.S. Department of Justice's leadership faces fallout from the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, whose replacements were handpicked by the Bush Administration.

UPDATE: The article was edited slightly for clarity.