Reps. Roy, McBath, Biggs, and Cohen Lead Bipartisan Effort to Simplify Federal Criminal Code

Representatives Chip Roy (TX-21), Lucy McBath (GA-06), Andy Biggs (AZ-05), and Steve Cohen (TN-09) re-introduced the "Count the Crimes to Cut Act of 2025" that would require the Department of Justice and federal agency heads to compile a comprehensive report detailing all federal criminal statutes and regulations entailing criminal penalties.

Congressman Roy, Chairman on the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government, said:"Freedom is just an illusion when the government buries its own citizens under ridiculous and never-ending criminal laws. Almost any adult in this country could be indicted for some kind of infraction at any given time, whether or not they were even aware they were in violation. This needs to change; getting a proper accounting is a necessary first step to fixing this problem and ensuring Americans are not in the crosshairs of overcriminalization."

Congresswoman McBath, Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance, said:“My first priority in Congress has always been maintaining the safety and well-being of my constituents. With the Count the Crimes to Cut Act, Americans will no longer have to fear being excessively punished and criminal justice professionals can better protect the public. I'm proud to take up this bill, and I thank my colleagues for their collaboration as we seek to expand safety and justice for the American people."

Congressman Biggs, Chairman on the Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance, said: "An estimated 4,000 federal criminal offenses is dwarfed by an estimated 300,000 federal regulatory offenses, but no government agency can even provide an official count. We have a duty to protect Americans’ right to liberty, and this begins with scaling down the massive overreach in federal criminal offenses.”

Congressman Cohen, a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, said: “Apparently no one knows how many federal crimes there are. Our founders warned of laws being too ‘voluminous’ or ‘incoherent’ that they could not be understood. The Count the Crimes Act simply seeks to request that information from the Department of Justice as a starting point for future reform. I am pleased to work with Congressman Roy and others on both sides of the aisle to pass this necessary legislation.”

The Count The Crimes to Cut Act of 2025 would:
Require the Attorney General, in cooperation with the agency heads, to produce a full report of all federal criminal statutes and federal regulations with criminal penalties.  For each offense, the report is required to provide the following details:

• The elements of each offense.
• The potential penalties for each offense.
• The number of prosecutions brought in the last 15 years for each offense.
• The mens rea required for each offense.

The legislation is endorsed by Families Against Mandatory Minimums, the Due Process Institute, the National District Attorneys Association, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the R Street Institute, and Right on Crime. 

Read the full legislation here.