House lawmakers will see allocations for personal security funding double again and gain access to a mobile duress system after a spate of political unrest led members to demand security upgrades.
House sergeant-at-arms William McFarland announced the new measures in an open letter to members on Monday.
The changes build on House Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-LA) move over the summer to help launch a temporary pilot program that provides $5,000 per member per month to cover the cost of security personnel away from the Capitol. In September, the program received an extension, and funding was bumped to $10,000 per member.
Now, the program has been made permanent, and the monthly allotment of security funding to members in the lower chamber will double again starting Dec. 1. On the same day, lawmakers will also gain access to the new mobile duress system, which will provide real-time alerts from local law enforcement, Capitol Police, and the SAA, according to Roll Call.
The development comes after conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination, the murders of several Minnesota lawmakers, an increase in swatting incidents targeting politicians, and rising threats against judges, which have left Washington on edge and demanding security reforms.
HOUSE REPUBLICANS UNVEIL SHORT-TERM SPENDING DEAL WITH $30 MILLION BOOST FOR MEMBER SECURITY
“I want everyone within the sound of my voice to understand members of Congress are safe,” Johnson said in September. “They will be kept safe. They have security measures now at their residences. And personally, we can always enhance and do more and do better. And I think everyone’s looking at that soberly right now.”
The White House demanded an additional $58 million in security funding for the executive and judicial branches following Kirk’s death. The money was attached to a spending deal to keep the government open, with the Supreme Court receiving $28 million, and the U.S. Marshals Service, which guards federal judges and courthouses, receiving $30 million, according to the Washington Post.