Chinese authorities will make enterprise-related law enforcement more targeted and less disruptive while maintaining strict oversight in key safety and environmental areas, officials said at a news conference on Thursday.

Shi Qingmin, an official with the Ministry of Ecology and Environment's Bureau of Ecological and Environmental Enforcement, said environmental authorities have corrected a number of irregularities since a nationwide campaign to regulate enterprise-related enforcement began in March last year.

She said authorities now place greater emphasis on prevention before violations occur, prudent assessment during enforcement and guidance for rectification afterward. In 2025, environmental authorities waived penalties in 8,947 minor violation cases nationwide, giving enterprises reasonable room to correct mistakes.

Technology has also helped make enforcement more targeted. By using satellite remote sensing, infrared imaging, drones, unmanned vessels and data from pollutant discharge permits, automatic monitoring and electricity consumption, environmental authorities have improved their ability to identify suspected violations before conducting on-site inspections.

As a result, on-site environmental inspections nationwide fell by nearly 40 percent in 2025, while the rate of problems discovered rose by 10 to 25 percentage points, Shi said.

She stressed that strict enforcement will continue against serious violations, including illegal discharge through hidden pipes, falsification of monitoring data, abnormal operation of pollution control facilities, and illegal transfer or dumping of hazardous waste. At the same time, authorities will expand digital and off-site supervision, flexible enforcement and legal services for enterprises, aiming to avoid disrupting law-abiding companies while closely monitoring violators.

In the transport sector, Lin Qiang, head of the Ministry of Transport's legal affairs department, said authorities have issued guidelines on penalty discretion and exemption lists for minor violations to address problems such as excessive punishment.

Transport authorities are also promoting reasoned enforcement, requiring officers to provide compliance guidance instead of simply imposing fines. For passenger transport and dangerous goods transport, big data is being used to classify vehicles by risk level and carry out differentiated supervision.

The ministry has also improved the 12328 transport service supervision hotline and encouraged grassroots authorities to work with judicial departments and industry associations to resolve disputes over cargo damage, repair quality and unpaid freight.

Lin said cross-regional enforcement cooperation has been strengthened in six regions, including the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and the Yangtze River Delta, to unify standards, share information and create a fairer transport market.

Li Hui, head of the private economy development bureau of the National Development and Reform Commission, said regulating enterprise-related enforcement is an important part of the law on promoting the private economy, China's first basic law dedicated to the private economy.

Since the law took effect in May 2025, more than 180 supporting measures have been introduced, including mechanisms to regulate enterprise-related fees and respond to law enforcement problems reported by private businesses, Li said.

The NDRC will further implement 18 measures under an action plan to support the private economy through the rule of law, focusing on fair competition, investment and financing, technological innovation, standardized business operations and improved delivery of business-friendly policies, she said.