Defund Cities that Defund the Police Act of 2025
- Bill Number
- H.R. 3439
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 1
- Policy Area
- Housing and Community Development
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2025-05-15: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
- Last Updated
- 2025-06-12T08:06:56Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
The "Defund Cities that Defund the Police Act of 2025" (H.R. 3439) aims to restrict federal grant funding for economic development and community programs to state and local governments that reduce or eliminate police funding without facing revenue shortfalls. It seeks to discourage actions perceived as "defunding the police" by tying eligibility for these grants to maintaining law enforcement budgets.
Key Provisions
- Definitions:
- A defunding State is one that either abolishes or disbands its statewide law enforcement agency without plans to rebuild it, or significantly cuts its law enforcement budget unless the state experienced a major revenue drop in the prior fiscal year.
- A defunding locality is an urban area (as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, excluding rural police departments) that either abolishes or disbands its police department without plans to rebuild, or significantly reduces its police budget unless facing a major revenue drop in the prior fiscal year.
- Restrictions on Economic Development Administration (EDA) Grants (amending the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965):
- Prohibits grants for public works, economic development, planning, administrative expenses, supplementary grants, and training/research/technical assistance if the project or recipient is in a defunding state or locality.
- Requires defunding states to return any received EDA funds, which are then reallocated to non-defunding localities within the same state.
- Restrictions on Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) (amending the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974):
- Bars defunding states or localities from receiving CDBG funds.
- Mandates that defunding states return funds, which are reallocated to non-defunding localities in the state using adjusted allocation formulas (excluding defunding entities).
- For defunding localities, funds are returned to the federal government or state governor for reallocation to non-defunding areas, following specific rules for entitlement and non-entitlement areas (entitlement areas are urban places with populations over 50,000 that receive direct federal grants; non-entitlement areas are smaller or rural places funded through states).
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Introduces new eligibility criteria based on police funding decisions, which were not previously factors in EDA or CDBG programs.
- Adds mechanisms for clawing back (recovering) and reallocating funds from defunding jurisdictions, overriding standard reallocation rules in CDBG to prioritize non-defunding areas.
- Explicitly defines "defunding" actions to target budget cuts or abolitions not justified by revenue losses, creating a conditional spending restriction absent in prior law.
Potential Impacts
- On Government Agencies: Federal agencies like the EDA (under the Department of Commerce) and HUD (which administers CDBG) would need to monitor state and local police budgets, verify revenue changes, and manage fund returns/reallocations, potentially increasing administrative workload.
- On Citizens: Residents in defunding urban areas could lose access to federal aid for infrastructure, housing, economic projects, and community development, affecting job creation, poverty reduction, and local services. Non-defunding areas might see increased funding, potentially widening regional disparities.
- On International Relations: No direct impacts, as the bill focuses on domestic grant programs.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- State and Local Governments: Urban localities and states risk losing federal funds if they cut police budgets, pressuring them to maintain law enforcement spending.
- Law Enforcement Agencies: Police departments benefit indirectly by discouraging budget reductions.
- Federal Agencies: EDA and HUD must enforce new rules, including audits and reallocations.
- Citizens and Communities: Urban residents, especially in low-income areas reliant on CDBG for housing and anti-poverty programs, may face reduced services; businesses and workers in economic development projects could see delays or cancellations.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal/Constitutional: The bill uses Congress's spending power (authority to attach conditions to federal funds) to influence state and local policies, which could face challenges under the Tenth Amendment (reserving powers to states) if seen as coercive. Courts might scrutinize whether the definitions of "defunding" are clear enough to avoid arbitrary enforcement.
- Political: Targets post-2020 "defund the police" debates by incentivizing sustained law enforcement funding, potentially deepening partisan divides over criminal justice reform without addressing broader policing issues.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Rep. Fitzpatrick, Brian K. [R-PA-1]
Cosponsors (1)
Rep. Golden, Jared F. [D-ME-2]
Recent Actions
- 2025-05-15: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
- 2025-05-15: Referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- 2025-05-15: Referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- 2025-05-15: Introduced in House
- 2025-05-15: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- Defund Cities that Defund the Police Act of 2025 — issued 2025-05-15 — PDF (7 pages)