WASHINGTON, D.C. – The US Capitol Police (USCP), which protects members of Congress, is asking for a historic amount of money for their budget. Their request would top one-billion dollars. USCP said they need more money because threats against members has drastically increased.
“The threat environment continues to grow,” said USCP Chief Michael Sullivan during a House hearing this week. Sullivan said in 2025, USCP investigated nearly 15,000 concerning statements and threats towards the congressional community.
“It’s a 58 percent increase from the year before,” said Sullivan.
In response to the increased amounts of threats, USCP is asking Congress to beef up their budget to one-billion dollars for the new fiscal year.
“The FY27 request funds for these areas: funding for personnel, operations, training, and needed security upgrades,” said Sullivan. “It allows us to hire offices, agents, modernize technology and improve communications with members offices. It also supports upgrades in security systems, tools, cybersecurity protection and our infrastructure so it keeps pace with those evolving threats.”
According to a 2025 CATO Institute report, nearly 36-hundred people have been murdered in politically motivated terrorist attacks in the US since January of 1975 through September 10, 2025, which is the day Charlie Kirk, the co-founder of Turning Point USA, was assassinated while speaking at an event. The President himself has faced two assassination attempts. In January 2026, Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar (D- MN) was sprayed with a syringe full of liquid during a town hall meeting.
“It is clear the temperature is still rising and we have to be prepared to protect ourselves, our loved ones, our staff in the event a threat becomes a real attack,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D- CT). “Everyday there are new emergencies Capitol Police must confront: cyber attacks on infrastructure, physical assaults on the complex itself are challenges Capitol Police must be prepared to meet at a moment’s notice.”
Representative Nick Langworthy (R- NY) said he takes USCP’s budget request seriously because there’s been political violence and assassinations in this country.
“This is unfortunately seemingly a normalized part of the job where people say things online that they wouldn’t say to someone’s face or entering into a pattern of threatening behavior,” said Rep. Langworthy. “It led to me temporarily closing my office in Jamestown earlier this year. When someone puts a threat online and says they’re gonna do something, we have to take those words seriously.”
