Federal Interviews Reform Act

Sponsor: Thomas P. Tiffany (Republican-WI)July 16, 2025

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Introduced

In Committee

Passed One Chamber

Passed Both Chambers

Signed into Law

Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

Federal agents would have to record interviews with crime suspects, and unrecorded talks couldn't be used in court.

This bill would make sure that federal law enforcement agents record all interviews with people suspected of crimes. If an interview isn't recorded, what was said couldn't be used as evidence in federal court. This would apply to interviews both in the U.S. and with U.S. citizens abroad.

What Would Change

Today, federal agents do not have a federal law requiring them to record interviews with people suspected of crimes. This bill would require the Attorney General to mandate the recording of all such interviews by Department of Justice officers and employees, both domestically and for U.S. citizens abroad. Crucially, unrecorded statements would not be allowed as evidence in Federal court.

Key Provisions

Requires federal law enforcement agents to record all interviews with people suspected of criminal offenses.
Makes sure that statements from unrecorded interviews cannot be used as evidence by the government in federal court.
Applies recording rules to both formal (custodial) and informal (non-custodial) interviews, but not to talks with confidential informants.
Lets federal agents record interviews without needing to tell the person being interviewed or getting their permission.
Requires recordings to be kept for 10 years after an investigation or court case ends, or indefinitely for capital offenses.
Extends these recording requirements to interviews of U.S. citizens conducted outside the United States by federal agents.

View on Congress.gov

HR 4468 · 119th Congress · July 16, 2025 · AI Summary by gemini-2.5-flash · 9/10

Federal Interviews Reform Act

What Would Change

Key Provisions

Lobbying Activity