In a major victory for President Donald Trump’s vision, the FBI has made a bombshell announcement.
Specifically, the bureau has abandoned Biden-era plans to move the FBI’s headquarters outside of D.C. and will instead relocate to the Reagan Building.
The move aligns with President Trump’s long-standing position that the FBI should remain in the nation’s capital.
This decision scraps a controversial plan that would have moved the bureau to Maryland suburbs, which many saw as a waste of taxpayer money.
FBI Director Kash Patel announced that after nearly two decades of searching for a new home, the bureau will finally leave the crumbling J. Edgar Hoover Building.
The deteriorating structure has faced significant structural issues and deferred maintenance for over 20 years.
Concrete has been falling off the exterior and aging water systems have created unsafe conditions.
The decision to relocate to the Ronald Reagan Building marks a return to the approach favored by President Trump during his first administration.
The president had previously proposed keeping the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C., rejecting costly suburban alternatives.
“This is a historic moment for the FBI,” said Patel. “We are ushering FBI Headquarters into a new era and providing our agents of justice a safer place to work.”
“Moving 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,” he added.
BREAKING: FBI Director Kash Patel to shut down the J. Edgar Hoover building and move headquarters to the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center. pic.twitter.com/gzuxGKSG4j
— ALX 🇺🇸 (@alx) July 1, 2025
The Ronald Reagan Building previously housed the U.S. Agency for International Development.
It offers a cost-effective solution that will save taxpayers more than $300 million in deferred maintenance costs that would have been required at the Hoover Building.
Biden administration officials had selected Greenbelt, Maryland, as the site for a new FBI headquarters following years of debate.
However, that plan faced criticism for its excessive costs and questionable necessity.
The decision ignited fierce competition between Virginia and Maryland lawmakers, with Virginia advocating for proximity to the FBI’s Quantico training facilities.
Patel is also planning to decentralize some FBI operations, aiming to relocate approximately 10% of the Washington workforce to other locations, including Huntsville, Alabama.
This approach aligns with the administration’s goals of streamlining government operations and reducing the concentration of federal power in Washington.
Democrats from Virginia, including Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, criticized the decision, calling it “a punt” rather than a plan.
Meanwhile, Maryland officials, including Governor Wes Moore, have vowed to fight the decision as they are upset that their state will not benefit from the economic windfall they had anticipated.
While the timeline for the transition remains unclear, the decision demonstrates the administration’s commitment to fulfilling President Trump’s vision for keeping vital national security agencies in the heart of the nation’s capital.
The move ensures that the FBI and the Department of Justice will remain in close proximity, enhancing coordination between these critical law enforcement entities.
