[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5070 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5070
To require Federal law enforcement officers to wear body cameras, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 29, 2025
Ms. Norton (for herself and Mr. Beyer) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require Federal law enforcement officers to wear body cameras, and
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Police Camera and
Accountability Act''.
SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS FOR FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS REGARDING THE
USE OF BODY CAMERAS.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Minor.--The term ``minor'' means any individual under
18 years of age.
(2) Subject of the video footage.--The term ``subject of
the video footage''--
(A) means any identifiable Federal law enforcement
officer or any identifiable suspect, victim, detainee,
conversant, injured party, or other similarly situated
person who appears on the body camera recording; and
(B) does not include people who only incidentally
appear on the recording.
(3) Video footage.--The term ``video footage'' means any
images or audio recorded by a body camera.
(4) Facial recognition or other biometric surveillance.--
The term ``facial recognition or other biometric surveillance''
means an automated or semiautomated process that captures or
analyzes biometric data of an individual to identify or assist
in identifying an individual or an automated or semiautomated
process that generates, or assists in generating, surveillance
information about an individual based on biometric data.
(b) Requirement To Wear Body Camera.--
(1) In general.--Federal law enforcement officers shall
wear a body camera.
(2) Requirement for body camera.--A body camera required
under paragraph (1) shall--
(A) have a field of view at least as broad as the
officer's vision; and
(B) be worn in a manner that maximizes the camera's
ability to capture video footage of the officer's
activities.
(c) Requirement To Activate.--
(1) In general.--Both the video and audio recording
functions of the body camera shall be activated whenever a
Federal law enforcement officer is responding to a call for
service or at the initiation of any other law enforcement or
investigative stop (as such term is defined in section 3)
between a Federal law enforcement officer and a member of the
public, except that when an immediate threat to the officer's
life or safety makes activating the camera impossible or
dangerous, the officer shall activate the camera at the first
reasonable opportunity to do so.
(2) Allowable deactivation.--The body camera shall not be
deactivated until the stop has fully concluded and the Federal
law enforcement officer leaves the scene.
(d) Notification of Subject of Recording.--A Federal law
enforcement officer who is wearing a body camera shall notify any
subject of the recording that he or she is being recorded by a body
camera as close to the inception of the stop as is reasonably possible.
(e) Requirements.--Notwithstanding subsection (c), the following
shall apply to the use of a body camera:
(1) Prior to entering a private residence without a warrant
or in non-exigent circumstances, a Federal law enforcement
officer shall ask the occupant if the occupant wants the
officer to discontinue use of the officer's body camera. If the
occupant responds affirmatively, the Federal law enforcement
officer shall immediately discontinue use of the body camera.
(2) When interacting with an apparent crime victim, a
Federal law enforcement officer shall, as soon as practicable,
ask the apparent crime victim if the apparent crime victim
wants the officer to discontinue use of the officer's body
camera. If the apparent crime victim responds affirmatively,
the Federal law enforcement officer shall immediately
discontinue use of the body camera.
(3) When interacting with a person seeking to anonymously
report a crime or assist in an ongoing law enforcement
investigation, a Federal law enforcement officer shall, as soon
as practicable, ask the person seeking to remain anonymous, if
the person seeking to remain anonymous wants the officer to
discontinue use of the officer's body camera. If the person
seeking to remain anonymous responds affirmatively, the Federal
law enforcement officer shall immediately discontinue use of
the body camera.
(f) Recording of Offers To Discontinue Use of Body Camera.--Each
offer of a Federal law enforcement officer to discontinue the use of a
body camera made pursuant to subsection (e), and the responses thereto,
shall be recorded by the body camera prior to discontinuing use of the
body camera.
(g) Limitations on Use of Body Camera.--Body cameras shall not be
used to gather intelligence information based on First Amendment
protected speech, associations, or religion, or to record activity that
is unrelated to a response to a call for service or a law enforcement
or investigative stop between a law enforcement officer and a member of
the public, and shall not be equipped with or employ any facial
recognition or other biometric surveillance technologies.
(h) Exceptions.--Federal law enforcement officers--
(1) shall not be required to use body cameras during
investigative or enforcement stops with the public in the case
that--
(A) recording would risk the safety of a
confidential informant, citizen informant, or
undercover officer;
(B) recording would pose a serious risk to national
security; or
(C) the officer is a military police officer, a
member of the United States Army Criminal Investigation
Command, or a protective detail assigned to a Federal
or foreign official while performing his or her duties;
and
(2) shall not activate a body camera while on the grounds
of any public, private, or parochial elementary or secondary
school, except when responding to an imminent threat to life or
health.
(i) Retention of Footage.--
(1) In general.--Body camera video footage shall be
retained by the law enforcement agency that employs the officer
whose camera captured the footage, or an authorized agent
thereof, for 6 months after the date it was recorded, after
which time such footage shall be permanently deleted.
(2) Right to inspect.--During the 6-month retention period
described in paragraph (1), the following persons shall have
the right to inspect the body camera footage:
(A) Any person who is a subject of body camera
video footage, and their designated legal counsel.
(B) A parent or legal guardian of a minor subject
of body camera video footage, and their designated
legal counsel.
(C) The spouse, next of kin, or legally authorized
designee of a deceased subject of body camera video
footage, and their designated legal counsel.
(D) A Federal law enforcement officer whose body
camera recorded the video footage, and their designated
legal counsel, subject to the limitations and
restrictions in this part.
(E) The superior officer of a Federal law
enforcement officer whose body camera recorded the
video footage, subject to the limitations and
restrictions in this part.
(F) Any defense counsel who claims, pursuant to a
written affidavit, to have a reasonable basis for
believing a video may contain evidence that exculpates
a client.
(3) Limitation.--The right to inspect subject to subsection
(j)(1) shall not include the right to possess a copy of the
body camera video footage, unless the release of the body
camera footage is otherwise authorized by this part or by
another applicable law. When a body camera fails to capture
some or all of the audio or video of an incident due to
malfunction, displacement of camera, or any other cause, any
audio or video footage that is captured shall be treated the
same as any other body camera audio or video footage under this
Act.
(j) Additional Retention Requirements.--Notwithstanding the
retention and deletion requirements in subsection (i), the following
shall apply to body camera video footage under this Act:
(1) Body camera video footage shall be automatically
retained for not less than 3 years if the video footage
captures an interaction or event involving--
(A) any use of force; or
(B) a stop about which a complaint has been
registered by a subject of the video footage; and
(2) Body camera video footage shall be retained for not
less than 3 years if a longer retention period is voluntarily
requested by--
(A) the Federal law enforcement officer whose body
camera recorded the video footage, if that officer
reasonably asserts the video footage has evidentiary or
exculpatory value in an ongoing investigation;
(B) any Federal law enforcement officer who is a
subject of the video footage, if that officer
reasonably asserts the video footage has evidentiary or
exculpatory value;
(C) any superior officer of a Federal law
enforcement officer whose body camera recorded the
video footage or who is a subject of the video footage,
if that superior officer reasonably asserts the video
footage has evidentiary or exculpatory value;
(D) any Federal law enforcement officer, if the
video footage is being retained solely and exclusively
for police training purposes;
(E) any member of the public who is a subject of
the video footage;
(F) any parent or legal guardian of a minor who is
a subject of the video footage; or
(G) a deceased subject's spouse, next of kin, or
legally authorized designee.
(k) Public Review.--For purposes of subparagraphs (E), (F), and (G)
of subsection (j)(2), any member of the public who is a subject of
video footage, the parent or legal guardian of a minor who is a subject
of the video footage, or a deceased subject's next of kin or legally
authorized designee, shall be permitted to review the specific video
footage in question in order to make a determination as to whether they
will voluntarily request it be subjected to a minimum 3-year retention
period.
(l) Disclosure.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), all
video footage of an interaction or event captured by a body
camera, if that interaction or event is identified with
reasonable specificity and requested by a member of the public,
shall be provided to the person or entity making the request in
accordance with the procedures for requesting and providing
government records set forth in the section 552a of title 5,
United States Code.
(2) Exceptions.--The following categories of video footage
shall not be released to the public in the absence of express
written permission from the non-law enforcement subjects of the
video footage:
(A) Video footage not subject to a minimum 3-year
retention period pursuant to subsection (j).
(B) Video footage that is subject to a minimum 3-
year retention period solely and exclusively pursuant
to paragraph (1)(B) or (2) of subsection (j).
(3) Priority of requests.--Notwithstanding any time periods
established for acknowledging and responding to records
requests in section 552a of title 5, United States Code,
responses to requests for video footage that is subject to a
minimum 3-year retention period pursuant to subsection
(j)(1)(A), where a subject of the video footage is recorded
being killed, shot by a firearm, or grievously injured, shall
be prioritized and, if approved, the requested video footage
shall be provided as expeditiously as possible, but in no
circumstances later than 5 days following receipt of the
request.
(4) Use of redaction technology.--
(A) In general.--Whenever doing so is necessary to
protect personal privacy, the right to a fair trial,
the identity of a confidential source or crime victim,
or the life or physical safety of any person appearing
in video footage, redaction technology may be used to
obscure the face and other personally identifying
characteristics of that person, including the tone of
the person's voice, provided the redaction does not
interfere with a viewer's ability to fully, completely,
and accurately comprehend the events captured on the
video footage.
(B) Requirements.--The following requirements shall
apply to redactions under subparagraph (A):
(i) When redaction is performed on video
footage pursuant to this paragraph, an
unedited, original version of the video footage
shall be retained pursuant to the requirements
of subsections (i) and (j).
(ii) Except pursuant to the rules for the
redaction of video footage set forth in this
subsection or where it is otherwise expressly
authorized by this Act, no other editing or
alteration of video footage, including a
reduction of the video footage's resolution,
shall be permitted.
(m) Prohibited Withholding of Footage.--Body camera video footage
may not be withheld from the public on the basis that it is an
investigatory record or was compiled for law enforcement purposes where
any person under investigation or whose conduct is under review is a
police officer or other law enforcement employee and the video footage
relates to that person's conduct in their official capacity.
(n) Admissibility.--Any video footage retained beyond 6 months
solely and exclusively pursuant to subsection (j)(2)(D) shall not be
admissible as evidence in any criminal or civil legal or administrative
proceeding.
(o) Confidentiality.--No government agency or official, or law
enforcement agency, officer, or official may publicly disclose,
release, or share body camera video footage unless--
(1) doing so is expressly authorized pursuant to this Act
or another applicable law; or
(2) the video footage is subject to public release pursuant
to subsection (l), and not exempted from public release
pursuant to subsection (l)(1).
(p) Limitation on Federal Law Enforcement Officer Viewing of Body
Camera Footage.--No Federal law enforcement officer shall review or
receive an accounting of any body camera video footage that is subject
to a minimum 3-year retention period pursuant to subsection (j)(1)
prior to completing any required initial reports, statements, and
interviews regarding the recorded event, unless doing so is necessary,
while in the field, to address an immediate threat to life or safety.
(q) Additional Limitations.--Video footage may not be--
(1) in the case of footage that is not subject to a minimum
3-year retention period, viewed by any superior officer of a
Federal law enforcement officer whose body camera recorded the
footage absent a specific allegation of misconduct; or
(2) divulged or used by any law enforcement agency for any
commercial or other non-law enforcement purpose.
(r) Third-Party Maintenance of Footage.--Where a law enforcement
agency authorizes a third party to act as its agent in maintaining body
camera footage, the agent shall not be permitted to independently
access, view, or alter any video footage, except to delete videos as
required by law or agency retention policies.
(s) Enforcement.--
(1) In general.--If any Federal law enforcement officer, or
any employee or agent of a Federal law enforcement agency fails
to adhere to the recording or retention requirements contained
in this Act, intentionally interferes with a body camera's
ability to accurately capture video footage, or otherwise
manipulates the video footage captured by a body camera during
or after its operation--
(A) appropriate disciplinary action shall be taken
against the individual officer, employee, or agent;
(B) a rebuttable evidentiary presumption shall be
adopted in favor of a criminal defendant who reasonably
asserts that exculpatory evidence was destroyed or not
captured; and
(C) a rebuttable evidentiary presumption shall be
adopted on behalf of a civil plaintiff suing the
Government, a Federal law enforcement agency, or a
Federal law enforcement officer for damages based on
misconduct who reasonably asserts that evidence
supporting their claim was destroyed or not captured.
(2) Proof compliance was impossible.--The disciplinary
action requirement and rebuttable presumptions described in
paragraph (1) may be overcome by contrary evidence or proof of
exigent circumstances that made compliance impossible.