Notice2025-13267
Guidance on Referrals for Potential Criminal Enforcement
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
July 16, 2025
Issuing agencies
Defense Department
Abstract
This guidance document describes DoD's plans to address criminally liable regulatory offenses under the recent executive order (E.O.) on Fighting Overcriminalization in Federal Regulations.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 134 (Wednesday, July 16, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 134 (Wednesday, July 16, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31987-31988]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-13267]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Office of the Secretary
Guidance on Referrals for Potential Criminal Enforcement
AGENCY: Office of General Counsel, Department of Defense (DoD).
ACTION: Guidance document.
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SUMMARY: This guidance document describes DoD's plans to address
criminally liable regulatory offenses under the recent executive order
(E.O.) on Fighting Overcriminalization in Federal Regulations.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Gerald Dziecichowicz, Associate
Deputy General Counsel, Office of the General
[[Page 31988]]
Counsel (Legal Counsel), Department of Defense, Office of the
Secretary, Pentagon, Room 3B688, Arlington, VA 22202, 571-256-0695.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On May 9, 2025, the President issued E.O.
14294, ``Fighting Overcriminalization in Federal Regulations,'' which
published in the Federal Register on May 14, 2025 (90 FR 20363-20365)
and is available at <a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2025-05-14/pdf/2025-08681.pdf">https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2025-05-14/pdf/2025-08681.pdf</a>. Section 7 of E.O. 14294 provides that within 45
days of the order, and in consultation with the Attorney General, each
agency should publish guidance in the Federal Register describing its
plan to address criminally liable regulatory offenses.
The E.O. does not apply to the enforcement of immigration laws or
regulations promulgated to implement such laws, nor does it apply to
the enforcement of laws or regulations related to national security or
defense. To the extent that DoD takes any criminal enforcement actions
not within one of those exemptions, DoD will apply the policy in this
guidance document to such actions.
That policy, subject to appropriate exceptions and to the extent
consistent with law, states that when DoD is deciding whether to refer
alleged violations of criminal regulatory offenses to the Department of
Justice (DOJ), officers and employees of the DoD should consider, among
other factors:
<bullet> the harm or risk of harm, pecuniary or otherwise, caused
by the alleged offense;
<bullet> the potential gain to the putative defendant that could
result from the offense;
<bullet> whether the putative defendant held specialized knowledge,
expertise, or was licensed in an industry related to the rule or
regulation at issue; and
<bullet> evidence, if any is available, of the putative defendant's
general awareness of the unlawfulness of his conduct as well as his
knowledge or lack thereof of the regulation at issue.
Further, this general policy is not intended to, and does not,
create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at
law or in equity by any party against the United States, its
departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents,
or any other person.
Consistent with the E.O., DoD also advises the public that by May
9, 2026, the Department, in consultation with the Attorney General,
will provide to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget a
report containing: (1) a list of all criminal regulatory offenses \1\
enforceable by the DoD or the DOJ; and (2) for each such criminal
regulatory offense, the range of potential criminal penalties for a
violation and the applicable mens rea standard \2\ for the criminal
regulatory offense.
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\1\ ``Criminal regulatory offense'' means a Federal regulation
that is enforceable by a criminal penalty. E.O. 14294, sec. 3(b).
\2\ ``Mens rea'' means the state of mind that by law must be
proven to convict a particular defendant of a particular crime. E.O.
14294, sec. 3(c).
Dated: July 11, 2025.
Aaron T. Siegel,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. 2025-13267 Filed 7-15-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6001-FR-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on July 16, 2025.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.