Capitol Police chief seeks additional security funds

“While progress has been made, there is still a lot of work to do,” Manger said. “The Department’s long-term plans to expand our protective operations are already underway — their importance only emphasized by Friday’s brutal attack. We will continue to work with our Congressional partners to add additional agents and security enhancements to support our protective operations mission.”

Manger asked appropriators this spring for a $105.5 million budget increase for fiscal 2023, including to hire more officers. He said in the year after Jan. 6, the department lost between 140 and 150 officers, double the normal attrition rate, and had about 300 officers fewer than needed as of March.

The fiscal 2023 Legislative Branch spending bill that the House Appropriations Committee approved in June would provide $708 million for the Capitol Police, a $105.6 million or 17.5 percent increase above the prior fiscal year.

The Senate version of the bill would provide nearly the same amount for the Capitol Police: $707.1 million. The Senate version matches the House bill in funding 137 additional officers and 123 civilian support personnel, which would bring the department’s numbers up to 2,126 officers and 567 civilians.

Both bills would set aside $2 million to provide off-campus security for members due to growing threats. A report accompanying the Senate bill said threats against lawmakers more than doubled in 2021, to 9,600, and in the first three months of 2022 the Capitol Police opened investigations into 1,800 threats against members.