The U.S. Office of Government Ethics has issued a final rule to adjust the fines for violations of the Ethics in Government Act in 2025, as required by law to keep up with inflation. These changes, effective January 15, 2025, include increasing penalties for activities such as falsifying financial disclosure reports and misuse of public reports. The adjustments ensure that penalties remain a deterrent and are calculated based on changes in the Consumer Price Index. These updates only affect violations occurring after November 2, 2015, that are addressed after the new rule's effective date.
Simple Explanation
The government is making the fines people must pay higher if they break a special honesty and ethics rule to keep up with rising costs of living. They want these fines to stay big enough to stop people from doing wrong things, like lying on their reports.