What This Bill Does
This bill allows House of Representatives employees to bring certain self-defense weapons into House office buildings in Washington, DC if they store those weapons in secure lockers while inside the building. The bill requires the Capitol Police Board to install and operate these storage lockers at building entrances within 180 days.
Who It Affects
House of Representatives employees, including paid and unpaid interns and fellows assigned to House offices. The Capitol Police Board and United States Capitol Police.
Key Provisions
• House employees who are legally authorized to carry self-defense weapons under DC law may bring those weapons into House office buildings if they immediately place them in a secure storage locker operated by the Capitol Police when entering through an external pedestrian entrance, then leave the building immediately after retrieving the weapon. (Sec. 2)
• The weapons allowed are self-defense sprays, stun guns, and concealed firearms as defined in DC's Firearms Control Regulations Act of 1975. (Sec. 2)
• The Capitol Police Board must design, install, and operate storage lockers at external pedestrian entrances of each House office building within 180 days of the law being enacted. (Sec. 3)
• The Capitol Police Board must create regulations to carry out the storage locker requirements. (Sec. 3)
• The term "House office building" includes the Cannon, Longworth, Rayburn, Ford and O'Neill House Office Buildings plus the House wing of the U.S. Capitol, but excludes building garages. (Sec. 4)
What Changes
Federal law will be amended to permit House employees to bring specific self-defense weapons into House office buildings for secure storage, which is currently prohibited under federal law.
Important Definitions
House employees include both paid and unpaid interns and fellows assigned to House offices. House office buildings are the five named office buildings plus the House wing of the Capitol, but do not include garages.
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1566
To permit employees of the House of Representatives who are authorized
to possess certain weapons in the District of Columbia to bring such
weapons into House Office Buildings for secure storage, and for other
purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 10, 2023
Mr. STEUBE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently deter-
mined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To permit employees of the House of Representatives who
are authorized to possess certain weapons in the District
of Columbia to bring such weapons into House Office
Buildings for secure storage, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS.
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(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the
4
‘‘Safe Storage Lockers for House Office Buildings Act’’.
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(b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following:
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•HR 1566 IH
(1) In 2021, there were 2,654 violent crime in-
1
cidents in the District of Columbia, and 2,900 of-
2
fenses reported in the District of Columbia by 2 law
3
enforcement agencies that submitted National Inci-
4
dent-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data which
5
covered the entire population of the District.
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(2) Many employees of the House of Represent-
7
atives who work in House Office Buildings in the
8
District of Columbia commute to and from their of-
9
fices by walking, and many have themselves been
10
victims of these crimes in the District of Columbia.
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(3) Individuals in the District of Columbia are
12
authorized under District of Columbia law to carry
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and use certain weapons for self-defense, including
14
self-defense sprays, stun guns, and concealed fire-
15
arms. However, District of Columbia and Federal
16
law prohibit individuals from carrying these weapons
17
inside a Federal building.
18
(4) As a result, employees of the House of Rep-
19
resentatives who work in House Office Buildings in
20
the District of Columbia are prohibited from car-
21
rying weapons inside the buildings in which they
22
work, even if these employees are authorized under
23
District of Columbia law to carry and use these
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weapons for self-defense outside these buildings.
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•HR 1566 IH
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZING HOUSE EMPLOYEES TO BRING CER-
1
TAIN SELF-DEFENSE WEAPONS INTO HOUSE
2
OFFICE BUILDINGS.
3
(a) AUTHORIZATION.—An individual who is an em-
4
ployee of the House of Representatives may bring a weap-
5
on described in subsection (b) into a House office building
6
if—
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(1) the individual is authorized under the laws
8
of the District of Columbia to carry the weapon out-
9
side of the building;
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(2) immediately prior to entering the building,
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the individual is carrying the weapon in compliance
12
with such laws;
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(3) the individual enters the building through
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an external pedestrian entrance;
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(4) upon entering the building with the weapon,
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the individual leaves the weapon in a storage locker
17
operated by the United States Capitol Police under
18
section 3 while the individual remains in the build-
19
ing; and
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(5) after retrieving the weapon from the locker,
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the individual leaves the building immediately.
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(b) WEAPONS DESCRIBED.—The weapons described
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in this subsection are as follows:
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(1) A self-defense spray described in section
1
212 of the Firearms Control Regulations Act of
2
1975 (sec. 7–2502.12, D.C. Official Code).
3
(2) A stun gun described in section 101(17A)
4
of the Firearms Control Regulations Act of 1975
5
(sec. 7–2501.01(17A), D.C. Official Code).
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(3) A firearm described in section 101(9) of the
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Firearms Control Regulations Act of 1975 (sec. 7–
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2501.01(9), D.C. Official Code).
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SEC. 3. PROVISION OF SAFE STORAGE LOCKERS AT BUILD-
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ING ENTRANCES.
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(a)
RESPONSIBILITIES
OF
CAPITOL
POLICE
12
BOARD.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the
13
enactment of this Act, the Capitol Police Board shall de-
14
sign, install, and operate storage lockers at external pedes-
15
trian entrances to each House office building, which may
16
be used while an employee of the House is in the building
17
to safely store a weapon which the employee brings into
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the building under section 2, and from which the employee
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may retrieve the weapon when the employee leaves the
20
building.
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(b) REGULATIONS.—The Capitol Police Board shall
22
promulgate such regulations as may be required to carry
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out this section.
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•HR 1566 IH
(c)
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section
1
5104(e)(1)(A) of title 40, United States Code, is amended
2
by striking ‘‘except as authorized’’ and inserting ‘‘except
3
as provided under the Safe Storage Lockers for House Of-
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fice Buildings Act or as authorized’’.
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SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
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(a) EMPLOYEE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTA-
7
TIVES.—In this Act, an ‘‘employee of the House of Rep-
8
resentatives’’ includes an intern (whether paid or unpaid)
9
and a fellow assigned to an office of the House of Rep-
10
resentatives.
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(b) HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING.—
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(1) IN
GENERAL.—In this Act, the term
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‘‘House office building’’ means any of the following:
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(A) The Cannon House Office Building.
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(B) The Longworth House Office Building.
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(C) The Rayburn House Office Building.
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(D) The Ford House Office Building.
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(E) The O’Neill House Office Building.
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(F) The House wing of the United States
20
Capitol.
21
(2)
EXCLUSION
OF
GARAGES.—The
term
22
‘‘House office building’’ does not include a garage of
23
a building described in paragraph (1).
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Æ
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