President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday afternoon to deter criminalization of Americans who violate federal regulations as opposed to laws passed by Congress.
Trump signed the order to “ease the regulatory burden on everyday Americans and ensure no American is transformed into a criminal for violating a regulation they have no reason to know exists,” according to a White House fact sheet on the order. Trump has signed a slate of executive orders since entering office the second time attempting to reverse government overregulation, including one requiring executive agencies to identify 10 regulations for elimination for every new one they seek to create.
The new order requires each government agency to compile, publish and annually update a list of “all enforceable criminal regulatory offenses” within their agency and “the range of potential criminal penalties, and applicable state of mind required for liability.” The administration seeks to discourage criminalization of regulatory offenses that don’t cause “significant harm” and weren’t committed with harmful intent.
“The situation is absurd, unjust, and ripe for abuse, enabling government officials to target unwitting individuals and weaponize regulations against them,” according to the fact sheet.
The president had signed 147 executive orders according to the Federal Register as of Monday, and Friday’s orders put him at more than 150. Trump signed 143 orders within the first 100 days of his presidency according to the American Presidency Project, more than any president in American history over that same time period.
