A federal judge has overturned the federal government’s decision to relocate the future FBI headquarters to downtown Washington, DC, reviving Greenbelt as the leading site for the long-planned project.

As covered in a Maryland Matters article, in a ruling issued on August 17, US District Judge Theodore Chuang found that the FBI and General Services Administration (GSA) acted unlawfully when they abandoned the previously selected Greenbelt site in favor of the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington. The court vacated the agencies’ decision and ordered them to reverse plans to redirect approximately $555 million allocated for the Greenbelt project.

The decision marks a significant victory for Maryland officials, who filed suit after the federal government announced in July 2025 that it would abandon the Greenbelt plan. Maryland argued that the Greenbelt selection, made in 2023 after years of study and evaluation, could not simply be reversed by executive agencies. In a press release from the Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, who filed the lawsuit alongside Prince George’s County in November 2025, called the ruling a significant victory for Maryland. The lawsuit argued that the administration unlawfully attempted to reverse the previously selected Greenbelt site and divert more than $1 billion in congressionally appropriated funding.

From the press release:

Maryland and Prince George’s County committed more than a decade of work to earn the FBI headquarters and pledged hundreds of millions of dollars. By blocking the Administration’s unlawful attempt to move the FBI to the Reagan Building and divert the funds Congress set aside for this project, the Court has cleared the path back to Greenbelt.

Congress directed the US General Services Administration in 2011 to identify a new location for the FBI headquarters, citing the deteriorating condition of the aging building in Washington. The current headquarters no longer meets the agency’s space needs and has required the FBI to lease additional office space throughout the region. As previously covered by MACo, in November 2023, the General Services Administration selected the Prince George’s County site, citing its low taxpayer cost, direct access to Metro, and alignment with the FBI’s mission. In July of 2025, federal officials announced that the agency will remain in Washington, DC, abandoning the previously approved plan to relocate the FBI to Greenbelt in Prince George’s County.

From the Maryland Matters article:

It is estimated to create over 7,500 jobs and add approximately $4 billion to the GDP of the County and State. If you look at the history of economic development in the Metro DC region, landing a major federal agency like the FBI has been the catalyst for significant economic development, said Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy.

While the ruling does not immediately begin construction, it reinstates Greenbelt as the designated location for the future FBI headquarters and represents a major step forward for a project that Maryland leaders have pursued for years. The ruling revives expectations for the jobs, economic development opportunities associated with the long-planned federal facility.

Read the full Maryland Matters article.

Read the press release from the Office of the Maryland Attorney General.