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Judge blocks plan to scrap FBI headquarters move to Greenbelt

NBC Washington (NBC4) · back to the audit
A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration's efforts to locate the FBI's new headquarters in D.C. rather than a long-planned move to Greenbelt, Maryland.

Last summer, FBI Director Kash Patel announced the bureau would instead relocate a few blocks away to the Ronald Reagan Building. Maryland sued, saying it was an attempt to illegally divert more than $300 million in funding Congress had already approved.

The Greenbelt site was chosen by the Biden Administration in 2023, ending a 15-year debate on where the FBI headquarters should be relocated -- Fifteen years of effort to lure the economic prize and prestige of being home to a major U.S. government facility.

"We competed against surrounding jurisdictions, and we won," Prince George's County Executive Aisha Braveboy said. "This is a huge economic prize. It's a $4 billion investment, which is the largest single investment in Prince George's County. It'll bring over 7500 jobs."

After Patel announced the choice of the Ronald Reagan Building, which had been home to the U.S. Agency for International Development until the Trump administration consolidated it into the State Department, Maryland sued.

"Congress told the federal government to select between A, B, and C, yet the Trump administration chose D. We couldn't let that stand," Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said. "[Monday], the court blocked the Trump administration from putting the FBI headquarters at the Reagan Building in Washington, D.C., clearing the path back to Greenbelt."

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore released a statement that said, in part, "I am proud of this coalition for standing together and refusing to let this administration play political games with the safety of our nation or the future of our state."

The governor's statement went on to say, "Now it is time to stop the games and get to work building the world-class FBI headquarters that our public servants deserve, where it belongs in Prince George's County, Maryland."

News4 requested comment from the FBI. A spokesperson said, "The court has chosen to impermissibly intervene for political reasons."

They added, "This FBI is mission focused and will continue the best course of action to meet the needs of law enforcement."