Deterrence is one goal of a new effort to charge more safety and environmental violations as federal felonies. Under an agreement announced in December, federal officials are being encouraged to charge more safety and environmental violations as felonies rather than as misdemeanors.According to a memorandum of understanding between federal agencies, more of the prosecutions would be handled by the Department of Justice’s Environmental and Natural Resources Environmental Crimes Section and the U.S. Attorney’s offices. Those two will be working more closely with the Department of Labor’s OSHA, Mine Safety and Health Administration, and Wage and Hour Division. Violations of the
