WASHINGTON — The General Services Administration (GSA) has adjusted the criteria it will use in deciding where to build a new FBI headquarters. The change comes after high-stakes meetings with congressional delegations from both Virginia and Maryland in March.
The changes include an increase in weight for the criteria dealing with cost and equity. Most significantly, the weighting for proximity to the FBI's facilities in Quantico and transportation access was decreased -- the first one being a clear advantage for Maryland.
"We are encouraged to see today’s announcement from the General Services Administration corrects the flawed approach released in September that ignored taxpayer costs and the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to equity. Today’s revised guidelines are a critical step in the right direction," read a joint statement from a host of Maryland political leaders, including Governor Wes Moore, who has been closely involved with the site selection process.
Three sites are finalists for the new FBI headquarters. One is in Springfield, Virginia near the Beltway interchange with I-95 and I-395. The two others are in Maryland; one is in Landover on the site of the old Landover Mall and the other is in Greenbelt right next to the metro station.
"The GSA didn’t pluck its initial criteria out of thin air—it spent years talking to experts and carefully deliberating on what is best for the mission of the FBI," read a joint statement from Virginia Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner. "While we are concerned that these changes to the criteria will further delay what has already been a drawn-out, decade-long process to select a new site to replace the dilapidated headquarters downtown, we remain confident that Virginia continues to be a home run in every category, and encourage the GSA to draw this process to a close sooner rather than later.”
Today's news stood in stark contrast to a story WUSA9 broke in June regarding the FBI's preference for the Virginia site under consideration. The FBI, in a document obtained exclusively by WUSA9, laid out specific details of why it believes proximity to Quantico, Virginia should play an outsized role in determining the future location of its headquarters.
For more than a decade, government leaders have sought to move the FBI's workforce out of the crumbling J Edgar Hoover building in downtown D.C. and into a new, state-of-the-art facility in the DMV's suburbs.
Political leaders on both sides of the Potomac River have engaged in an arduous tug-of-war to try and land the project, estimated to cost over $2 billion. Back in March, elected officials from both Maryland and Virginia made their final pitches to the General Services Administration (GSA), the agency that will ultimately make the decision.
The new document prepared for Maryland leaders and ultimately shared with Virginia leaders as well, includes reasons provided by the FBI to bolster the argument for why a new headquarters should be close to the FBI's training academy and its other resources in Quantico.
"A review of FBI data demonstrates why this proximity matters," the document reads.
One portion of the document partially answers a question WUSA9 and Maryland's leaders have been asking since last year: How many FBI employees are actually splitting their time between the Hoover building in downtown DC and Quantico?
According to a chart included in the FBI's response, over a two-month period from July to September 2022, 544 people assigned to work at D.C. locations made 1,754 trips through the Quantico gate – less than 10% of the estimated 7,500 employees expected to work at the new headquarters.
In a footnote on the same page, the FBI points out the "data remains imperfect."
In the document, the FBI also points out casework collaboration, operational response and training as important factors to be close to Quantico.
Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland) has been involved in the FBI site selection process for more than a decade.
The congressman provided the following statement to WUSA9 in response to the new FBI document:
“This document from the FBI once again provides the same numbers they have given to the Maryland Delegation numerous times without answering our questions. We continue to ask to why this small group of headquarters employees traveled between Quantico and the Hoover Building and how long their trip to Quantico lasted. The Maryland Delegation has repeatedly asked for clarification of this data, including during our consultation with the GSA and FBI earlier this year. This response remains inadequate as it simply repackages the same numbers without directly answering our Delegation’s questions about them. The Maryland sites will enable the FBI to better perform its mission while advancing the Biden-Harris Administration’s stated equity goals, having the lowest cost to the Federal government, providing the best access to transportation including Metro, and quickest schedule to build the new, consolidated FBI headquarters.”
Maryland leaders, including Hoyer, believe the equity component of the site-selection criteria should be weighted higher.
"This is a legacy-defining opportunity for the Biden Administration to lift up a majority African American community that has long been neglected," said Gov. Wes Moore (D-Maryland) in a statement to WUSA9. "If the Biden Administration undertakes a fair and rigorous process, Maryland is the best.”
"The new FBI headquarters should come to a state where the chief executive firmly supports the mission and people of the FBI," said Moore in a subtle dig at Virginia's Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
A handful of House Republican members have recently raised concerns about the cost and need for a new FBI headquarters while questioning the overall mission of the law enforcement agency following claims of political bias towards conservatives.
Rep. David Trone (D-Maryland), also a candidate for Senate, was not as subtle as Governor Moore in pointing fingers.
“Time after time, Gov. Youngkin and Republican members of Virginia’s federal delegation have called for defunding the FBI, questioned its motives, and scorned its mission. We must ask ourselves: 'Why should the FBI headquarters be moved to a state where it’s unwanted and under threat by the state’s governor and Members of Congress?' It’s outrageous and embarrassing," said Trone in a statement. "In Maryland, we will always welcome the FBI and the hardworking Americans defending our country.”
Each of the three finalists' sites offers distinct pros and cons. Meeting the FBI's mission requirements and offering ideal transportation access make up more than 50% of the criteria that will be used to decide the final location.
"Virginia is well-positioned to support the FBI headquarters with a diverse workforce, extensive transportation network and close proximity to public and private sector partners," said Macaulay Porter, spokeswoman for Youngkin. "Virginia's competitive advantage is clear and partisan attacks won't change that."
Last we were told, a decision is expected in "late spring," which means literally any day now this decade-plus decision process could finally reach a conclusion.
