Maryland is suing the FBI and the General Services Administration for abandoning plans to build a new headquarters in Greenbelt, Maryland.
The state says federal officials broke the law when they scrapped the Greenbelt site in favor of the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C. The lawsuit claims the agencies ignored a completed selection process and diverted $555 million in funds that Congress had already approved for the Greenbelt project.
The complaint says the GSA chose Greenbelt in 2023 after years of reviews and competition between Maryland and Virginia. In July 2025, the FBI and GSA announced plans to move into existing space at the Reagan Building instead.
"These actions flouted Congress's explicit direction," the lawsuit states. Maryland argues that federal agencies cannot ignore laws that dictated how the headquarters site must be chosen and how funds should be spent.
Maryland Senators Chris Van Hollen and Angela Alsobrooks, both Democrats, accused the Trump administration of defying Congress.
"The Trump administration has no grounds to ignore this selection, or redirect even one penny that Congress specifically appropriated," they said in a joint statement.
The FBI did not respond to a request for comment. The GSA declined to comment.
Maryland says the Reagan Building is not suitable for the FBI. The state cites reports showing the building needs $95 million in fire-protection upgrades and $38 million in structural repairs.
Officials argue that it would be cheaper and safer to build a new headquarters at the Greenbelt site.
The FBI's current home, the J. Edgar Hoover Building in downtown Washington, is in poor condition. Netting has been placed around the facade to prevent falling debris from injuring pedestrians.
The lawsuit is the latest chapter in a long-running battle between Maryland and Virginia over where to house the FBI. A 2023 inspector general review found flaws in the GSA's site-selection process but did not call for reversing it.
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