Protecting Americans From Overcriminalization Through Regulatory Reform
Headline: Agencies Must Disclose Criminal Risks in New Regulations
What it does: Agencies must disclose criminal penalties and required mental-state standards in rules, justify strict liability to the Office of Management and Budget, and publish guidance favoring administrative over criminal referrals.
- New rules must state whether violating them can lead to criminal charges.
- Agencies must publish plans favoring administrative remedies over criminal prosecutions.
- The Office of Management and Budget will review and require justifications for strict liability.
Summary
This order requires federal agencies to be clear when a rule could make ordinary mistakes into crimes. New rule notices and final rules must say whether violations carry criminal penalties and must state the required mental-state (mens rea) or identify strict liability. Agencies must justify strict liability to the Office of Management and Budget and publish plans to use administrative fixes instead of criminal referrals in many cases.
It matters because it gives people fair notice about criminal risks and focuses prosecutions on knowingly wrongful conduct.
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