PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Jan 3, 2025
No Federal Funds for Political Prosecutions Act
This bill specifies that no funds or property received through equitable sharing by a state or local law enforcement agency with the authority to prosecute a criminal case may be used to investigate or prosecute a current or former President or Vice President, or a candidate for the office of President.
People & committees
Rep. Biggs, Andy [R-AZ-5] · R–AZ
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Feb 6, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
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Analyze H.R.118 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine H.R.118 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine H.R.118 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine H.R.118 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.
PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2025-01-03 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
This bill would restrict how state and local law enforcement agencies with criminal prosecution authority use certain federally shared forfeiture funds and property. They could not use those resources to investigate or prosecute current or former presidents or vice presidents, or presidential candidates. Agencies would have to certify compliance, and a finding of noncompliance would block further transfers under the listed laws.
No funds or property received pursuant to section 511(e) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 811(e)), section 981 of title 18, United States Code, or section 524 of title 28, United States Code, by a State or local law enforcement agency with the authority to prosecute a criminal case may be used to investigate or prosecute the President or Vice President, a former President or Vice President, or a candidate for the office of President.
A State or local law enforcement agency referred to in subsection (a) shall certify to the Attorney General that the law enforcement agency will comply with subsection (a).
In the case of a State or local law enforcement agency that the Attorney General determines has failed to comply with this section, the Attorney General may not transfer
Section 1 names the proposal the “No Federal Funds for Political Prosecutions Act.” That title does not establish that any particular prosecution is politically motivated.
This Act may be cited as the No Federal Funds for Political Prosecutions Act.
The proposed restriction applies to funds and property received under three specified federal provisions by state or local law enforcement agencies authorized to prosecute criminal cases. It covers both investigations and prosecutions of the listed people. It does not make the restriction depend on a finding that a case is politically motivated, and it does not prohibit using every possible funding source.
No funds or property received pursuant to section 511(e) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 811(e)), section 981 of title 18, United States Code, or section 524 of title 28, United States Code, by a State or local law enforcement agency with the authority to prosecute a criminal case may be used to investigate or prosecute the President or Vice President, a former President or Vice President, or a candidate for the office of President.
Covered agencies would have to certify to the Attorney General that they will follow the restriction.
A State or local law enforcement agency referred to in subsection (a) shall certify to the Attorney General that the law enforcement agency will comply with subsection (a).
If the Attorney General determines that an agency has failed to comply with this section, further transfers to that agency under the listed laws would be prohibited. This covers property seized by the Attorney General and forfeited to the United States—property surrendered to federal ownership—and proceeds from its sale.
In the case of a State or local law enforcement agency that the Attorney General determines has failed to comply with this section, the Attorney General may not transfer, under section 511(e) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 811(e)), section 981 of title 18, United States Code, or section 524 of title 28, United States Code, any property seized by the Attorney General and forfeited to the United States, or any of the proceeds from the sale of such property to such State or local law enforcement agency.
The bill uses the definition of “candidate” in section 301 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. It does not reproduce that definition.
In this section, the term candidate has the meaning given such term in section 301 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101).
The supplied official-actions snapshot, updated February 6, 2025, records introduction in the House on January 3, 2025, and referral that day to the Judiciary and Energy and Commerce committees for provisions within their respective jurisdictions.
Source snapshot updated 2025-02-06T15:18:08Z.
2025-01-03: Introduced in House
2025-01-03: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2025-01-03. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No provision unrelated to the bill's main subject was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion does not establish absence in other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for particular recipients or places was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish formal earmark status in accompanying materials or other versions.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
Findings to examine
The supplied introduced text contains a narrow protection for specified officeholders and candidates within its central funding restriction. This classification does not assess the provision's justification or motives.
Current and former presidents and vice presidents, and presidential candidates, would receive a special protection against investigation or prosecution using the specified resources of covered state and local agencies. This is a restriction on particular funding and property, not general immunity from investigation or prosecution.
No funds or property received pursuant to section 511(e) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 811(e)), section 981 of title 18, United States Code, or section 524 of title 28, United States Code, by a State or local law enforcement agency with the authority to prosecute a criminal case may be used to investigate or prosecute the President or Vice President, a former President or Vice President, or a candidate for the office of President.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Feb 6, 2025. How PlainBill uses AI