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Sentencing Law Change News Hub
News filed under Law changes, newest first.
Federal sentencing law changes here are amendments and statutes that alter how a federal prison term is calculated. A new rule is not retroactive just because it passed. The note's date, the effective date, and any retroactivity vote are three different facts.
The newest notes cover amendments the U.S. Sentencing Commission sent to Congress on April 30, 2026, which took effect November 1, 2026: a cleanup of 26 rarely used rules, a fentanyl-related-substances line in the drug table, and higher fraud-loss thresholds with simpler multiple-count rules. They took effect as scheduled and are part of the 2026 Guidelines Manual. The court uses the Manual in effect on the sentencing date unless the newer Manual would raise the range. Then Peugh v. United States, 569 U.S. 530 (2013), requires the older Manual as a whole (USSG §1B1.11).
Two notes cover November 1, 2025. Departures left the Manual under amendment 836. The judge calculates the range, then applies 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). The mitigating-role cap took effect the same day for new sentencings. A motion to make it retroactive failed on August 6, 2025, so it is not a basis for 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2).
If the hearing is still ahead, the change belongs in the presentence report. Objections are due within 14 days (Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 32). Opinions, as opposed to amendments, are on the court-decision page.
These notes are general information about federal cases.
- Nov. 1 Guidelines List Sentencing Options by Zone
See which sentences each Sentencing Table zone allows after November 1, 2026, and why the months in the table itself did not change.
- Nov. 1 Guideline Cleanup Deletes 26 Rarely Used Rules
On Nov. 1, 2026, the Guidelines dropped 26 offense-level rules courts had not applied in five years, and some drug guideline paragraphs got new numbers.
- Nov. 1 Guideline Change Adds Fentanyl-Related Substances
Starting Nov. 1, 2026, the federal drug guideline lists fentanyl-related substances and treats them like fentanyl analogues, with a way to rebut that rule.
- 2026 Guideline Amendments: Higher Fraud Loss Thresholds and Simpler Multiple-Count Rules
Amendments in effect since November 1, 2026 raise the dollar amounts in the fraud loss table for inflation and rewrite the multiple-count rules.
- Federal Sentencing Guidelines Drop "Departures" Starting November 1, 2025
Amendment 836 took effect November 1, 2025. Nearly all departures left the Guidelines, and judges now use a two-step process under §1B1.1.
- Commission Declines to Make 2025 Drug "Mitigating Role" Change Retroactive
On August 6, 2025, a motion to make the 2025 mitigating-role-cap amendment retroactive failed 3–2 because four votes are required.