U.S. Senators Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Mike Lee (R-Utah), and Chris Coons (D-Del.) have introduced the Count the Crimes to Cut Act, a bipartisan bill aimed at increasing transparency in federal criminal law. The legislation would require the Attorney General and heads of federal agencies to compile and publish comprehensive lists of all federal criminal statutory offenses, including the elements of each offense.
Senator Cruz said, "Criminal laws are opaque and scattered across thousands of pages of statutes and regulations, preventing Americans from understanding when they might be crossing into criminal conduct. Congress has a responsibility to make the criminal code knowable and accessible to enhance transparency, accountability, and clarity in federal criminal law. I’m proud to join Senators Lee and Coons in introducing this bipartisan bill.”
Senator Lee stated, “Our federal criminal code is massively over-inflated, with thousands of crimes making it impossible for anyone to fully understand the criminal liability they face. We cannot fix what we refuse to measure, and this bill ensures Congress and the public have the facts necessary to make smarter, safer policy decisions.”
Senator Coons added, “We need to reexamine the sprawling system of federal crimes and penalties tucked into new laws and inserted into old ones that Congress has created over decades. This bipartisan, commonsense bill will create a database of all federal crimes, so lawmakers can determine the reforms needed to make the law fairer, saner, and more effective.”
The bill is also cosponsored by Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), and Peter Welch (D-Vt.). The House version of this legislation passed by voice vote.
If enacted, the Count the Crimes to Cut Act would require:
- The Attorney General to report on all federal criminal statutory offenses with details such as offense elements, potential penalties, prosecution data from the past 15 years, and mens rea requirements.
- Heads of key agencies would be required to produce similar reports for regulatory offenses enforceable by their departments.
- Both Department of Justice and relevant agencies must create publicly accessible online indexes for these offenses.
Senator Ted Cruz has been active in Texas politics for several years. In 2024 he won reelection against Colin Allred with 53.1% of the vote; he previously defeated Beto O'Rourke in 2018 with 50.9%, and Paul Sadler in 2012 with 56.5%.
