Subcommittee grills FBI director on proposed $545 million cut; Patel urges about $11.2 billion to avoid layoffs

At a House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies budget hearing, Director Kesh Patel, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, told members the FBI needs roughly $11.1–$11.2 billion for fiscal 2026 and that a preliminary White House budget proposal cutting $545,000,000 from the bureau would force personnel reductions.

The request-and-reply exchange was framed around staffing and mission risk. "I'll ask you for money that I need and that the bureau needs, and I won't ask you for a dime more," Director Kesh Patel said when describing his approach to the agency's request. He warned that, if the proposed reductions were enacted, the FBI could be forced to remove an additional 1,300 employees.

The subcommittee's top members pressed for detail on how a smaller budget would affect operations. Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro said the FBI's work is “of utmost importance” and expressed concern about a proposed cut of more than half a billion dollars to salaries and expenses. Chair of the full committee Tom Cole and Chairman Rogers (subcommittee chair) said timely budget documents would improve oversight and planning.

Members and the director exchanged staffing figures and budget math. Director Patel said the FBI's on‑the‑books workforce is roughly 35,000 employees, including about 13,000 special agents and roughly 3,000 intelligence analysts; he also said approximately 11,000 of the agency's roughly 37,000 positions (figure cited by the director) are located in the National Capital Region. Patel characterized his department request as roughly "multiples of billions" less than some other large federal accounts and said the bureau seeks funding sufficient to fill vacancies and avoid cutting mission‑critical positions.

Lawmakers asked whether the bureau has identified which positions or programs would be cut under the smaller White House submission; the director responded that the FBI has not decided specific cuts because his office is working with the Office of Management and Budget and appropriators to avoid them. "The proposed budget that I put forward is to cover us for $11,100,000,000," Patel said.

Members repeatedly sought line‑item details. Representative Nydia M. Velázquez and others asked for more exact lists and criteria for program changes and relocations. Patel said the bureau is prioritizing placing agents and analysts in field offices and is seeking to avoid cutting front‑line capacity.

No formal funding decisions were made during the hearing; appropriations and budget outcomes will be determined later in the subcommittee and full committee process. Members reserved seven days to submit additional questions for the record.

The hearing also included extended questioning about FBI programs and operations — including a separate line of inquiry on the bureau’s transparency obligations, background investigations, and personnel actions tied to January 6 investigations — but the budget and staffing exchange was the central subject for the subcommittee's appropriations oversight.

The hearing produced no votes or formal committee actions; it was an oversight and information session to inform forthcoming appropriations work.