Sponsor
The bill tightens and standardizes federal use-of-force rules—reducing unjustified deadly-force incidents and bystander harm through required warnings and training—but it may increase challenges for officers making split-second decisions, complicate some apprehensions, and require federal spending to implement.
Suspects and communities (including immigrants, low-income people, and racial/ethnic minorities) will face fewer deadly-force incidents because federal officers are limited to using deadly force only to stop imminent death or serious bodily injury, reducing unjustified killings and protecting civil rights.
Federal law enforcement personnel will receive standardized, Attorney General–mandated training and updated policies, which should produce more consistent, non-lethal response tactics across agencies.
People involved in or near law-enforcement encounters (suspects and bystanders) will have more opportunity for de-escalation because officers are required to give a verbal warning when it is safe to do so.
Federal law enforcement officers will face stricter use-of-force constraints that could complicate split-second decisions and increase perceived and actual risk to officers in dangerous encounters.
Local governments and the general public may see slower or more difficult apprehensions of dangerous fleeing suspects because restrictions on force (including firing to disable vehicles or stop fleeing suspects) could limit some immediate interdiction options.
Taxpayers and federal agencies will incur costs because implementing the new policy and required training will require federal spending and agency resources.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Imposes a federal statutory limit on when federal officers may use deadly force and restricts firing at moving vehicles, requires warnings when practicable, and mandates AG-developed training.
Representative · D-NY
Official title: To provide that Federal law enforcement officers may only use deadly force when necessary to prevent imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury to the law enforcement officer or another person, and for other purposes.
Introduced February 9, 2026 by Grace Meng · Last progress February 9, 2026
Sets a federal legal limit on when federal law enforcement officers may use deadly force: only when the officer reasonably believes it is necessary to prevent imminent death or serious bodily injury to the officer or another person. It bans deadly force solely to stop a fleeing suspect, to disable a moving vehicle, or against someone whose threat is only to themselves or property, and narrows when officers may shoot at moving vehicles. Requires a verbal warning when practicable, prohibits warning shots outside federal prisons, and directs the Attorney General (with other federal agency heads) to create and provide training on tactics for situations where deadly force is prohibited. It defines which officers are covered by cross-reference to existing federal statutes.