This Tuesday, three MD senators and congressmen secured the inclusion of language to advance the process for a new, consolidated Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) headquarters in the Omnibus FY2022 funding package that the President signed into law.
Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer and Anthony Brown (all D-Md.) made the announcement.
Structural and security concerns of the FBI’s HQ at the J. Edgar Hoover Building have surged for two decades. A tour of the Hoover Building in 2015 revealed dated technology, an inefficient structure with cracked concrete, and makeshift workstations in storage.
Congress first addressed concerns related to the Hoover Building in 2011, approving a resolution authorizing the General Services Administration to begin site selection of a new HQ. The GSA announced eligible sites in 2014 and procured a shortlist of three locations in 2015, following Congress’ approval and funding. In preparation for the move, the FBI began consolidating various leased buildings into the Hoover Building. Greenbelt Metro was one of the three locations.
Last October, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-MD), chairman of the Senate Appropriations, released proposed legislation for the remaining nine Senate appropriations bills for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022. The bill-making appropriations for the Departments related to Commerce, Justice, and Science allocates $632 million for the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) new headquarters (HQ).