§2B5.1 Offenses Involving Counterfeit Bearer Obligations of the United States: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025
Guideline §2B5.1, Offenses Involving Counterfeit Bearer Obligations of the United States, was the primary guideline for 1,486 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. A prison term went to 1,244 (84%), and the median was 18 months. The yearly count fell from 280 in 2016 to 40 in 2025.
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In brief: Guideline §2B5.1, Offenses Involving Counterfeit Bearer Obligations of the United States, was the primary guideline for 1,486 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. A prison term went to 1,244 (84%), and the median was 18 months. The yearly count fell from 280 in 2016 to 40 in 2025.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 1,486 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Acquittals and dismissals come from a second source, the Federal Judicial Center's records of 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. It is part of the Federal Prosecution Analysis series, which builds on Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System. How the numbers were built: How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built.
Fewer People Were Sentenced Each Year
The yearly count of people sentenced under §2B5.1 was 280 in fiscal year 2016 and 40 in fiscal year 2025. The count was 975 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 511 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025.
The median prison term did not follow the same direction. It was 18 months in both periods. The records cannot show why fewer people were sentenced under this guideline.
What Does §2B5.1 Cover?
The U.S. Sentencing Guidelines Manual titles §2B5.1 "Offenses Involving Counterfeit Bearer Obligations of the United States." The U.S. Sentencing Commission classifies the cases as Forgery/Counter/Copyright offenses.
Each of the 1,486 people had §2B5.1 as the primary guideline, the one that set the offense level for the most serious count. Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted.
Prison Terms and Probation
A prison term went to 1,244 people (84%). Probation only, with no prison or other confinement, went to 167 (11%).
Among those sent to prison, the median term was 18 months. A quarter received 30 months or more, and a quarter received 8 months or less. These are terms imposed, not time served.
Pleas, Trials, and the Guideline Range
A total of 1,465 people (99%) pleaded guilty, and 21 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 18 months after a guilty plea and 33 months after a trial. The trial figure rests on 21 people.
Among guilty pleas, 83% had a written plea agreement and 17% were straight pleas.
All 1,486 had a recorded sentence position. Within the range was 57% (844). Below the range at the government's request was 15% (227), and below without a government request was 25% (371). Above the range was 3% (44).
Mandatory Minimums, Supervised Release, and Restitution
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 19 people (1%).
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 1,217 people (82%), with a median term of 36 months.
Restitution was ordered for 888 people (60%), and a fine for 79 (5%). In criminal history, 26% were in category I, the lowest, and 21% were in category VI, the highest.
Yearly Medians
Yearly medians ranged from 15 months in 2017, 2019, and 2021 to 22.5 months in 2025. The 2025 median is based on 40 people, so a few cases can move it.
The share who pleaded guilty was 97% or higher in every year. The table lists each year.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 280 | 18 months | 97% |
| 2017 | 238 | 15 months | 99% |
| 2018 | 228 | 18 months | more than 99% |
| 2019 | 229 | 15 months | more than 99% |
| 2020 | 160 | 18 months | 99% |
| 2021 | 98 | 15 months | 99% |
| 2022 | 86 | 19.5 months | 99% |
| 2023 | 67 | 20 months | 99% |
| 2024 | 60 | 18 months | 97% |
| 2025 | 40 | 22.5 months | 98% |
What the Records Cannot Show
The approved crosswalk lists no close court-martial counterpart for this guideline, so only federal numbers appear here. The data cannot show the amount of counterfeit currency in a case or how much of a term was served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2B5.1 (1,486), from the U.S. Sentencing Commission's individual data files. The primary guideline is the one that set the offense level for the most serious count.
Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30. No person, judge, or lawyer is identified in any of these records.
What to Keep in Mind
No parole in federal prison; credit for good conduct. Federal prison has no parole for crimes committed on or after November 1, 1987. A federal prisoner can earn up to 54 days of good conduct credit for each year of the sentence the judge imposed, which is about 15%. Some federal prisoners can also earn First Step Act time credits, but many offenses make a person ineligible. The numbers in this post are the sentences judges imposed, not the time people actually served.
Federal supervised release. Most federal prison sentences are followed by a term of supervised release that the judge sets as part of the sentence. A person who violates it can be sent back to prison. A court-martial cannot sentence anyone to supervision after release. Military parole and mandatory supervised release are decided later by a board, not by the judge at trial.
Who decides the sentence, and under what rules. Federal judges sentence every federal case. They must calculate the Sentencing Guidelines range, which is advisory, and must impose any mandatory minimum the statute requires unless an exception applies. In courts-martial, the accused could choose sentencing by members until the rules changed. For cases in which every guilty finding is for an offense committed after December 27, 2023, a military judge sentences alone, within sentencing parameters. Courts-martial tried in 2024 and later include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the data cannot tell them apart.
Time periods. Federal numbers are by federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30), based on the sentencing date. The military numbers are by trial date. Neither source has the date of the offense, so a change in law shows up in either data set gradually.
How life sentences and "time served" are counted. In the federal numbers, a life sentence is counted as 470 months, and any other sentence longer than 470 months is counted as just under 470 months. A sentence of "time served" is counted as one day (0.03 months). Averages are affected by these rules; medians much less.
Mandatory minimum sentences. Many federal statutes on drugs, images of child exploitation, child sex abuse, and firearms carry mandatory minimum prison terms. The UCMJ has mandatory minimums only for a few offenses (a dishonorable discharge or dismissal for rape and sexual assault, and life for premeditated murder). Federal sentences for these offenses are partly set by Congress, not by the judge.
Related Analysis
- Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- §2B3.1 Robbery: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (same guideline chapter part)
- §2B4.1 Bribery in Procurement of Bank Loan and Other Commercial Bribery: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (same guideline chapter part)
- §2B5.3 Criminal Infringement of Copyright or Trademark: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (same guideline chapter part)
- §2B2.1 Burglary of a Residence or a Structure Other than a Residence: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (same guideline chapter part)
- U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles (source)
- Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants) (source)
About the author. Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts Where All The Bodies Are Buried and runs the Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.