WASHINGTON — The House is increasing the amount of money available to individual members for security purposes ahead of the August recess, the House Administration Committee announced Tuesday.

Since one Minnesota state lawmaker was killed by a gunman in June and a second was critically injured, members of Congress have clamored for enhanced measures to keep them safe, particularly while they’re in their home districts.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and House Administration Chair Bryan Steil, R-Wis., unveiled the plan to the Republican conference on Tuesday morning. It doubles a per member allowance to boost at-home security systems while dramatically increasing a monthly allotment that lawmakers can now use to hire personal security.

“The enhanced Member security framework aims to address security gaps and alleviate Members’ concerns while fulfilling their duties as elected officials, particularly in their districts and residences,” a summary of the security changes circulated by the House Administration Committee stated.

The new offerings increase the lifetime Residential Security Program limit to $20,000, up from $10,000. That program was established in 2022 through the House sergeant-at-arms to help pay for home security measures, but only 60% of House members were participating as of June, according to an official familiar with the numbers.

Members will also have access to $5,000 a month for the rest of the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, a jump from $150. The monitoring and maintenance allotment can now be used to hire security personnel who can accompany lawmakers or guard their homes, according to the House Administration notice.

The plan also directs the House sergeant-at-arms to work with Capitol Police to expand local law enforcement memorandums of understanding, which are meant to provide additional coverage for members away from the Capitol. The SAA will also ask Capitol Police Chief Michael Sullivan, who took over the department in late June, to send a letter to the National Association of Chiefs of Police requesting support in protecting members, according to the summary.

Lawmakers were united in the wake of the Minnesota shootings around the idea that more needs to be done to keep members safe. But there was no immediate consensus on how to go about it.

Some members, including Tennessee Republican Rep. Tim Burchett, called on the House to broaden the acceptable use of Members’ Representational Allowance funds, which help pay for the operational and personnel expenses for individual offices, to cover around-the-clock security services. Meanwhile, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and House Administration ranking member Joseph D. Morelle, both of New York, wrote to Johnson calling for an increase in MRA funds to support member security.

Democrats were critical of the fiscal 2026 Legislative Branch spending measure proposed by House Republicans, which would keep MRA funding flat.

“This bill fails to increase funding for additional security protections for members of Congress,” California Democratic Rep. Pete Aguilar, who serves as chair of the House Democratic Caucus, said during the markup in June. “It is incumbent upon us as a committee to pass a bill that ensures members of Congress are safe and can do their jobs without the fear of political violence.”

The security enhancements announced this week would be paid for using existing House SAA funds, according to the House Administration Committee.

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