[{"_1":2,"_111":-5,"_112":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,99],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},"mediaId",6246460,"mediaKeyId","3217555-c5d9bcf79fb3166c825a519520389fb6","parentId",3217555,"title","Lawmakers press FBI director on transparency, background checks and allegations of politicization","audioSeconds",327,"startMs",2411000,"endMs",2738000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3217555-c5d9bcf79fb3166c825a519520389fb6&start=2411&end=2738","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3217555-c5d9bcf79fb3166c825a519520389fb6/thumbnail_2411000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6246460/Lawmakers-press-FBI-director-on-transparency-background-checks-and-allegations-of-politicization","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6246460-b347d61def1fc2c1e5be05dd8da68e3b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770448568&Signature=Ns9ZDzFqEjy7iZjqfH8KmQQYVVxwwGO7DIILl6kgiQNM3nzdabnt6dCCn5SYgPQkdCTmbm4nFHiwbp3n-Jws-hBKbmTdPO23JPVC2c~qFmwPiEC~Yta3V-~M3GA9o9mJEhKEkoJoxEASFhHKwPIcBhgQoLvkIMbTYJY5u3T7x09Mi8S-C1TQH2MpVsk8-tqCdQBzYZWNjWu99o6Ayq1ByPWm2xQ4f83LGYf0K5dkbG7-IdGrIVejygYfLilkTJxS~Co3NLXLnzhKlZtf6zVqWaoRV8cUMXtCuNIuITuoeJyrdiAgkLJ48o1Nmz15aTA39TZSNTbWq-J4r9uDQ1s9KA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","U.S. House Committee on Appropriations","date","2025-05-08T08:09:16Z","article","During the House Appropriations Subcommittee hearing, lawmakers pressed Director Kesh Patel on the FBI's transparency obligations and on recent orders and personnel matters that members said raise concerns about politicization of the bureau.

Representative Grace Meng asked whether the FBI would commit to posting account‑specific apportionments that the law requires; Director Patel replied, \"If that's what the law requires. Yes. I'm not the appropriations expert, but if that's what the law requires, that's what we'll do.\" He later said he would provide a timeline for making the apportionments public.

Members also asked about the bureau's background investigations (BIs) and vetting of nominees. Patel said career components run background investigations and that bureau personnel and career investigators determine what information to include in BI reports. When asked whether potentially controversial comments or associations (cited in relation to a nominee, Ed Martin) should be included in a BI, Patel said that field agents determine those matters and that he had not reviewed the specific BI at issue.

Several members raised the Justice Department email that requested a list of current and former FBI employees who at any time worked on January 6 investigations and asked whether director Patel anticipated additional firings. Patel said the email predated his arrival, the matter is tied up in litigation, and that \"the only way you get fired from the FBI while I'm the director is if you violate the ethical guidelines or break the law.\" He added later that he would \"look into\" whether particular background investigation records included material cited by members.

The hearing also included pointed exchanges about the bureau's independence and reports of \"weaponization.\" Representative Madeleine Dean and others criticized what they called a pattern of targeting and asked whether the director would shield the bureau from political pressure; Patel replied that the FBI's standard for opening cases is a constitutional reasonable‑articulable basis and that the bureau will not make prosecutorial decisions.

No formal administrative actions or personnel changes were announced during the hearing. Director Patel agreed to provide additional materials and timelines in writing where members requested them.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Budget Hearing – Fiscal Year 2026 Request for the Federal Bureau of Investigation","oneSentenceSummary","Members of the Appropriations Subcommittee questioned Director Kesh Patel about public posting of apportionments, background investigations on nominees, the Justice Department's request for a list of January 6 investigators, and broader concerns about perceived politicization of the FBI.","taxTitle","Appropriations: House Committee, Standing Committees - House & Senate, Congressional Hearings Compilation, Legislative, Federal","taxId",1832,"location","","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},6246465,"Patel details recent fentanyl and cartel operations, credits interagency seizures; cites need for foreign and domestic focus",4977,2073000,7050000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3217555-c5d9bcf79fb3166c825a519520389fb6&start=2073&end=7050","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3217555-c5d9bcf79fb3166c825a519520389fb6/thumbnail_2073000.jpg","/articles/6246465/Patel-details-recent-fentanyl-and-cartel-operations-credits-interagency-seizures-cites-need-for-foreign-and-domestic-focus","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6246465-a2fc3cdbd34497be1417b47f2a2c35cd/orig.mp4?Expires=1770448568&Signature=Il3kF0Ue-~W~Y6vMiaC~TR6HrZgx6M12gpEkfygiylPxcomY7ZbF3UQ7Y07B9o9ld3hQ9N7RqYxefrAVO4J1EHOwrd1MAMb-MhE1whT9u1AcqELmhWpGLAKP2xlyqVVAlmXn4ZSWm6q6bWs3gAmmZemhKaIE~fxXS0cvNC05VkDPdJczp4jn1TlJxrl7XZg9lgGLguUUWmzLlSH15KTW8xfLcV-yoU3ZrS77H~Z9yR0g~O91YaRPQg8Ae77nG6egGKw6wSaEZ6UFwBPjYvBEPQRob4qHw4PeffHs2ArzkBc50EcgyAngiCy-qSi2rVmnRlG1Q5o-5O3TFEXn4c1e7g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Director Kesh Patel told the House Appropriations Subcommittee the FBI and partners have made sizable narcotics seizures and arrests in recent months and described an expanded counter‑cartel posture that includes domestic field deployments and overseas actions.

Patel described multiple recent operations and statistics during his opening remarks and in response to members' questions. He said FBI operations had seized 6 kilograms of fentanyl in Kentucky in a recent case that \"constitutes an amount of fentanyl that can kill half a million Americans\" and that over the last three months the FBI had seized about 840 kilograms of fentanyl in total. He also said the FBI, working with Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense partners, had seized 44,000 pounds of illicit narcotics in an operation off the coast of Florida.

The director credited interagency regional efforts such as the Southwest Border Intelligence Center and the Counter Cartel Coordination Center for stepped‑up interdiction and described extradition efforts: since taking office he said the FBI had participated in multiple extraditions of Mexican cartel figures to face U.S. prosecution.

Patel emphasized the international dimension of the crisis, saying the bureau is focusing on precursor chemical production and shipments originating in Mainland China and on trafficking routes through Canada and Mexico. \"If you stop that and you stop the shipments going to our allied nations, such as Canada and Mexico and South America, then you stop their ability, the cartel's ability, to make fentanyl,\" he said.

Members from border and inland districts sought specifics on staffing and task force support for high‑intensity drug trafficking areas. Patel said every state would receive additional agents or analysts as part of the field‑redistribution plan and that, if appropriations permit, Texas would receive about 85 additional FBI personnel to cover major cities and resident agencies.

The hearing included no formal enforcement actions; the session was an oversight hearing. Members said they would continue to review the bureau's written material and follow up on interagency coordination, extraditions and supply‑chain interdiction plans.

No new legal authorities were proposed during the hearing; the director urged Congress and interagency partners to sustain funding and diplomatic effort to target foreign precursor production and shipping.","FBI Director Kesh Patel highlighted recent seizures and enforcement actions against fentanyl traffickers and cartel figures, described expanded Southwest Border intelligence efforts, and urged an all‑of‑government push to target precursor chemicals and foreign production.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},6246469,"Patel outlines plan to move FBI personnel out of Washington, expand Huntsville and CJIS footprints",1604,1856000,3460000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3217555-c5d9bcf79fb3166c825a519520389fb6&start=1856&end=3460","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3217555-c5d9bcf79fb3166c825a519520389fb6/thumbnail_1856000.jpg","/articles/6246469/Patel-outlines-plan-to-move-FBI-personnel-out-of-Washington-expand-Huntsville-and-CJIS-footprints","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6246469-4129520147185b3dd1c9cefbb359c5f2/orig.mp4?Expires=1770448568&Signature=fgOxbGqWYNDap9Q3p7GtKIwHjceSMpkiYVbUdSKvrogIUKXunfHpS96VtuBdw1qwbMf8LalWe-oZDF8W8EoLy8IXGhhr207Q1slJmTtNgBdHHNdcgYfVYh2H0QCmUOam68Nnuvqt0oQCy0BbMbi3MgByViSEveUXQ~n8y2TmxGM6~SnFonzj1QLUhcHNZvwZE7cDxm6QWpVLt64kbEL5O-sm2RUlWPI~bizCQ9EuVZH1tYc4gvx1--mM1SXoSmKhLS2lCIzRsHWw1vQunUB4g4mlC0PXBfJoyBI1vOuwwePdTzb3UWAzhoS-QRTNI24bpUft17ybDeV2tlZ4uLPPPQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Director Kesh Patel told the House Appropriations Subcommittee that the FBI is moving more than 1,000 positions out of the Washington, D.C., National Capital Region and into field offices across every state to bolster violent‑crime and narcotics work in local jurisdictions.

\"We are moving more than a thousand positions outside of the Washington DC area,\" Director Kesh Patel said, adding that roughly \"11,000 ish\" of the FBI's roughly 37,000 positions remain in the National Capital Region and that a redeployment of personnel is intended to put agents and analysts closer to where violent crime and drug trafficking occur.

Patel described a planned expansion at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala., which the bureau and appropriators have used for training and specialized operations. He said the FBI is moving about 500 employees to Huntsville this year and that, to finish additional planned buildings and training facilities, the FBI would need roughly $145–$160 million for construction and an additional amount for operations and maintenance. \"Once those buildings are built in the next 3 years, we will move another 1,300 employees down to Huntsville,\" he said.

The director also spoke about the Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) center in Clarksburg, W.Va., saying the site hosts core information infrastructure that supports FBI operations and that the bureau would like to expand capacity there. He told lawmakers the site has land available but needs funding for new construction and systems modernization.

Members pressed for lists of which specific positions would move and which programs might be affected; Patel said bureau career officials identified violent‑crime hotspots and apportioned redeployments across states and resident agencies. He said 904 positions were currently listed as vacant and slated for transfer and that every state would receive additional personnel under the plan.

Patel and lawmakers discussed facilities availability and timing: the Huntsville North Campus is largely constructed and occupied; additional South Campus buildings require funding before further moves. The director asked appropriators to consider both construction and O&M costs in their decisions.

There were no formal approvals or budgetary votes during the hearing. Committee members said they would continue to review the FBI's written documentation and staffing plans as appropriations markups proceed.","FBI Director Kesh Patel told the House Appropriations subcommittee he plans to move more than 1,000 positions from the National Capital Region to field offices, is relocating several hundred staff to Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, and seeks construction and operating funds to expand facilities there and in West Virginia's CJIS campus.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},6246474,"Subcommittee grills FBI director on proposed $545 million cut; Patel urges about $11.2 billion to avoid layoffs",4383,548000,4931000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3217555-c5d9bcf79fb3166c825a519520389fb6&start=548&end=4931","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3217555-c5d9bcf79fb3166c825a519520389fb6/thumbnail_548000.jpg","/articles/6246474/Subcommittee-grills-FBI-director-on-proposed-545-million-cut-Patel-urges-about-112-billion-to-avoid-layoffs","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6246474-d94e39f8276568ee8c5a15583ccab68a/orig.mp4?Expires=1770448568&Signature=j~bOso5PVGPfEfmIK9bRtUYV9lKorTVa5pa~S41RcM0og-oF6yojbsPkh1dfrlXZXk6y8EREVlZCAhu9OyPG~zEyx~6JezwJlk8BXsghtdPwrnFq6tYmGj6zAdMmREpb066MMpor~-o20KZB8bpLx427V23AoBd2mfDhEHsz4pKX83quhjH5RnL0BW70V-oJQnVyxztKzLbbo6Fv0sLNtcGmA-Pi118b-cKyb0KxEAd9j6jKQj5sXREZRynfReXKBbjl~oGbI~HwWLqOqgpzmXKwcTlEJE2NLTVKUzvcciZ6nrMkUxiDHwCBr0zJGEuEIPGG4U-CJ8q1cxa4WmOIEg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At a House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies budget hearing, Director Kesh Patel, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, told members the FBI needs roughly $11.1–$11.2 billion for fiscal 2026 and that a preliminary White House budget proposal cutting $545,000,000 from the bureau would force personnel reductions.

The request-and-reply exchange was framed around staffing and mission risk. \"I'll ask you for money that I need and that the bureau needs, and I won't ask you for a dime more,\" Director Kesh Patel said when describing his approach to the agency's request. He warned that, if the proposed reductions were enacted, the FBI could be forced to remove an additional 1,300 employees.

The subcommittee's top members pressed for detail on how a smaller budget would affect operations. Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro said the FBI's work is “of utmost importance” and expressed concern about a proposed cut of more than half a billion dollars to salaries and expenses. Chair of the full committee Tom Cole and Chairman Rogers (subcommittee chair) said timely budget documents would improve oversight and planning.

Members and the director exchanged staffing figures and budget math. Director Patel said the FBI's on‑the‑books workforce is roughly 35,000 employees, including about 13,000 special agents and roughly 3,000 intelligence analysts; he also said approximately 11,000 of the agency's roughly 37,000 positions (figure cited by the director) are located in the National Capital Region. Patel characterized his department request as roughly \"multiples of billions\" less than some other large federal accounts and said the bureau seeks funding sufficient to fill vacancies and avoid cutting mission‑critical positions.

Lawmakers asked whether the bureau has identified which positions or programs would be cut under the smaller White House submission; the director responded that the FBI has not decided specific cuts because his office is working with the Office of Management and Budget and appropriators to avoid them. \"The proposed budget that I put forward is to cover us for $11,100,000,000,\" Patel said.

Members repeatedly sought line‑item details. Representative Nydia M. Velázquez and others asked for more exact lists and criteria for program changes and relocations. Patel said the bureau is prioritizing placing agents and analysts in field offices and is seeking to avoid cutting front‑line capacity.

No formal funding decisions were made during the hearing; appropriations and budget outcomes will be determined later in the subcommittee and full committee process. Members reserved seven days to submit additional questions for the record.

The hearing also included extended questioning about FBI programs and operations — including a separate line of inquiry on the bureau’s transparency obligations, background investigations, and personnel actions tied to January 6 investigations — but the budget and staffing exchange was the central subject for the subcommittee's appropriations oversight.

The hearing produced no votes or formal committee actions; it was an oversight and information session to inform forthcoming appropriations work.","At a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on the FBI’s FY2026 funding, Director Kesh Patel warned a proposed $545 million cut would force staff reductions and asked lawmakers to restore roughly $11.1–$11.2 billion in operating funds to avoid further personnel losses.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Lawmakers press FBI director on transparency, background checks and allegations of politicization

Patel details recent fentanyl and cartel operations, credits interagency seizures; cites need for foreign and domestic focus

Patel outlines plan to move FBI personnel out of Washington, expand Huntsville and CJIS footprints

Subcommittee grills FBI director on proposed $545 million cut; Patel urges about $11.2 billion to avoid layoffs