H.R. 5973: Stop Excessive Force in Immigration Act of 2025

The Stop Excessive Force in Immigration Act of 2025 writes a new rulebook for how federal immigration agents conduct arrests and raids, and puts it directly into immigration law.

The core rule on force is a proportionality test: agents could use non-deadly force only when no reasonably safe and workable alternative exists, and the force has to match the resistance they actually face. They'd have to weigh a person's age, size, injury, or disability first, make real efforts to de-escalate, and — importantly — step in and report it when another agent crosses the line. The bill also creates a duty to call for or give medical aid when someone is hurt.

The most visible changes are about identity. Agents would generally have to wear a uniform or clear identification showing they're federal immigration personnel, and they could not use the word "Police" or anything that makes them look like local cops. Masks and face coverings would be limited to three narrow situations — a national security threat, future covert work, or an environmental health hazard — and only with a supervisor's written sign-off. The bill's findings note that federal regulations already require agents to identify themselves at the time of arrest; this bill adds cameras and consequences to make that stick.

Within 180 days, DHS would have to require body-worn cameras on all personnel and dashboard cameras on all vehicles, on by default. Footage would be kept one year — three years for any use-of-force or complaint incident, and until any related investigation or lawsuit ends. The person in the video, their lawyer, the parents of a detained minor, and the next of kin of someone who died could all inspect that footage, though not alter it.

Crowd-control weapons get pulled back too. Flash-bangs, rubber bullets, pepper balls, and tear gas would be barred except at the border or against a documented public-safety or national-security threat with a supervisor-approved tactical plan, and only for trained, certified personnel. The bill specifies that lawful protest and other First Amendment activity does not, by itself, count as a safety risk that justifies that equipment.

Agents would have to notify local police before operating in their area, train at least annually on use of force and constitutional limits, and DHS and the Justice Department would owe Congress reports every six months. A searchable database — public in redacted form — would track use-of-force incidents, significant incidents, and civil-rights complaints. The bill states it grants no new deadly-force authority, doesn't stop agents from protecting themselves, and doesn't require state or local police to help with immigration enforcement.