In a significant development on July 1, 2025, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) jointly announced that the FBI headquarters will relocate to the Ronald Reagan Building complex in downtown Washington, D.C. This decision marks a pivotal shift after nearly two decades of failed attempts to find a permanent new space for the Bureau, which has long struggled with the deteriorating conditions of its current home, the J. Edgar Hoover Building.
The Hoover Building, situated at 935 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, has been the FBI’s headquarters since 1975 but has suffered from years of deferred maintenance. GSA Acting Administrator Stephen Ehikian highlighted the building’s challenges, noting it is "a great example of a government building that has accumulated years of deferred maintenance, suffering from an aging water system to concrete falling off the structure." These longstanding structural and utility issues have made the building increasingly unsafe and inefficient for the FBI’s workforce.
FBI Director Kash Patel described the move as "a historic moment for the FBI," emphasizing that relocating to the Ronald Reagan Building is "the most cost-effective and resource-efficient way to carry out our mission to protect the American people and uphold the Constitution." Patel’s remarks underscore the urgency of providing the Bureau’s agents and staff with a safer, more functional workplace that supports their critical national security role.
The Ronald Reagan Building, which opened in 1998, is one of the largest federal office complexes in the capital. Located next to the Federal Triangle Metro station, just blocks from the Hoover Building, it previously served as the headquarters for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) until its closure earlier this year. The building also currently houses U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Children's Museum among other tenants.
GSA Public Buildings Service Commissioner Michael Peters praised the move’s financial benefits, stating, "This move not only provides a world-class location for the FBI’s public servants, but it also saves Americans billions of dollars on new construction and avoids more than $300 million in deferred maintenance costs at the J. Edgar Hoover facility." This shift away from costly new construction toward repurposing an existing facility is being hailed as a prudent use of taxpayer funds.
The decision to abandon the 2023 plans to build a new suburban campus in Greenbelt, Maryland, was driven by the high costs and lengthy timeline associated with that project. The Greenbelt site had been selected after a 15-year debate during the Biden administration, with Congress appropriating funds specifically for its development. However, the GSA scrapped those plans amid concerns over cost and delays, opting instead for the Reagan Building’s downtown location.
This change has sparked political controversy. Maryland officials, including U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen, Representative Steny Hoyer, Governor Wes Moore, Senator Angela Alsobrooks, and several other state representatives, released a joint statement opposing the Administration’s attempt to redirect the funding intended for the Greenbelt campus. They argued, "The FBI deserves a headquarters that meets their security and mission needs – and following an extensive, thorough, and transparent process, Greenbelt, Maryland, was selected as the site that best meets those requirements." They further warned that a headquarters located within the District "would not satisfy their security needs" and that "simply moving down the street would ignore the real threats the Bureau faces and further jeopardize the safety of those protecting our communities." The group pledged to fight the proposal "with every tool we have."
Virginia Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine also criticized the move, calling it "a punt" rather than a plan. They expressed concern that the decision "brushes aside years of careful planning, ignores the recommendations of security and mission experts, and raises serious concerns about how this decision was made." They highlighted a broader pattern from the current administration marked by "indiscriminate firings, canceled leases, and a general disregard for the federal workforce," emphasizing that the FBI’s law enforcement and intelligence professionals deserve a facility that matches the gravity of their work.
The political backdrop to this decision includes former President Donald Trump’s long-standing intervention in the FBI headquarters saga. During his first term, Trump canceled earlier plans to move the FBI to suburban Maryland or Virginia, instead proposing a smaller headquarters in Washington, D.C., and relocating thousands of FBI personnel to locations across the country, including Alabama, Idaho, and West Virginia. In a March 2025 speech at the Justice Department, Trump reiterated his opposition to the Maryland move, stating, "They were going to build an FBI headquarters three hours away in Maryland, a liberal state," adding that the state’s politics "had no bearing" on his decision to stop the move. He declared, "We're going to stop it. We're not going to let that happen. We're going to build another big FBI building right where it is."
Despite the announcement, the GSA has not yet provided a timeline for when the FBI’s transition to the Reagan Building will begin or how the move will affect existing tenants. The Reagan Building currently hosts several federal agencies, and officials have pledged to support their continued operations during the FBI’s relocation.
FBI Director Patel has also indicated plans to redistribute about 10% of the Bureau’s Washington workforce — roughly 1,500 employees — to other locations nationwide, including the FBI’s facility in Huntsville, Alabama. This decentralization effort aims to enhance operational efficiency and address workforce safety concerns, as Patel has described the Hoover Building as "unsafe for our workforce."
The FBI’s move to the Ronald Reagan Building signals a new chapter for the agency’s infrastructure, balancing operational needs, financial prudence, and political realities. While the decision has drawn criticism from Maryland and Virginia officials who favored a suburban campus, it reflects a pragmatic approach to addressing the pressing issues posed by the aging Hoover Building. As the FBI embarks on this transition, the focus remains on providing its agents and staff with a secure, modern, and efficient headquarters that supports their vital mission to protect the American people.
