GREENBELT, Md. — A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration’s plan to relocate FBI headquarters to the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C., giving new life to Maryland’s years-long effort to bring the agency to Greenbelt.
U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang ruled Aug. 17 that the federal government’s decision to abandon the previously selected Maryland site and move the headquarters to the Reagan Building was “not in accordance with law.”
Chuang vacated the July 2025 decisions by the FBI and General Services Administration, or GSA, selecting the Reagan Building, as well as the FBI’s related decision to reprogram $555 million for the move. The court also issued a permanent injunction barring the federal government from implementing the Reagan Building relocation under those decisions.
The ruling does not order the FBI to begin construction in Greenbelt.
Instead, it vacates the FBI and GSA decisions selecting the Reagan Building, leaving the previously selected Greenbelt site in play while additional federal action would still be necessary before construction could begin.
The decision marks the latest turn in a headquarters fight that has stretched for more than a decade.
GSA selected Greenbelt in 2023 after Congress directed the agency to choose among three previously identified sites: Greenbelt and Landover in Maryland, or Springfield, Va.
Chuang found that the relevant appropriations laws required GSA to select from those three locations and did not authorize the agencies to substitute the Reagan Building in downtown Washington.
The FBI and GSA changed course in July 2025, announcing that the bureau would instead relocate to the existing Reagan Building. At the time, federal officials said using an existing federal property would save taxpayers money and avoid years of new construction.
Maryland and Prince George’s County sued in November 2025, challenging the new site selections and the FBI’s proposed redirection of funding.
Funding At Center Of Ruling
The court also set aside the FBI’s decision to reprogram $555 million for work associated with moving the headquarters to the Reagan Building.
Court filings show that the $555 million included approximately $323 million that Congress had specifically appropriated for a new consolidated FBI headquarters in the National Capital Region.
Chuang found the entire $555 million reprogramming decision unlawful because its stated purpose was to implement the Reagan Building selection that the court had already determined was not in accordance with law.
The $323 million portion presented an additional issue. Congress placed restrictions on those funds in statutory text, and Chuang found that the FBI could not remove them through an agency reprogramming decision.
Maryland Officials Praise Decision
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore celebrated the ruling and called for the Greenbelt project to move forward.
“President Trump tried to take from Maryland what Maryland had already won. He failed,” Moore said in an official statement.
Moore later added that it was time to begin building the headquarters “where it belongs: in Prince George’s County, Maryland.”
Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, whose office brought the lawsuit alongside Prince George’s County, said the ruling cleared a path back toward Greenbelt.
Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy framed the decision largely around its potential economic impact on the county.
“Today’s decision is fundamentally about jobs and opportunity for Prince George’s County and the State of Maryland,” Braveboy said.
According to an official statement from Braveboy, construction of the Greenbelt headquarters could create more than 7,500 jobs and generate approximately $4 billion in investment for Prince George’s County and Maryland.
In the same statement, Braveboy characterized the headquarters as potentially the largest economic development project in county history. The job and investment figures are projections from county officials rather than guaranteed outcomes.
FBI Disagrees With Ruling
The FBI criticized the court’s decision in a statement reported by The Associated Press and defended the administration’s effort to pursue what the bureau considers a more cost-effective headquarters option.
The bureau accused the court of improperly intervening “for political reasons” and said the FBI would continue pursuing what it considers the best course for meeting its law enforcement needs.
The FBI has sought for years to replace the aging J. Edgar Hoover Building on Pennsylvania Avenue, which was dedicated in 1975 and has experienced documented deterioration.
What Happens Next
The ruling does not require the federal government to immediately begin construction in Greenbelt.
The court vacated the Reagan Building decisions and permanently blocked their implementation, but additional federal action would still be necessary before construction of a Greenbelt headquarters could begin.
The parties were also directed to file a joint status report within 14 days addressing the next steps in the case and whether it can be closed.
Further litigation or an appeal remains possible. Congress could also alter the statutory framework governing the headquarters project.
For Prince George’s County, however, a project that appeared to have been lost when the federal government changed course in 2025 once again has a path forward.
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