Senate approves new path for member security funding

The Senate greenlit a rules change Thursday night to allow Senators to use official office funds for personal security measures — a move driven by concerns about lawmaker security in the wake of last week’s assassination of Charlie Kirk.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune brought the proposal to the floor and it was approved by unanimous consent.

“Every senator will now have additional flexibility to address the security concerns they face as public officials,” said Thune.

He cited the additional $30 million for state and local law enforcement partnerships with Capitol Police that House Republicans included in their stopgap spending bill slated for a vote Friday in the House.

“There’s ongoing bipartisan work to address member security in the legislative branch appropriations bill, which I hope the House and Senate will complete work on in the very near future,” Thune continued.

The Senate-passed legislative branch spending bill would include funding for a pilot program for increased security for lawmakers in their home states and additional security investments are possible as the bill moves through a bipartisan and bicameral negotiation process in the wake of the Kirk assassination.

Thune also said that he’s working with the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms to explore additional options for security for senators.

This move was previewed earlier this week by Senate Rules Committee Chair Mitch McConnell, who told his GOP colleagues at a lunch meeting that he heard their concerns and interest in more flexibility on security expenses and outlined the path ahead for the rules change.

The office accounts, which also fund staff salaries and office supplies, can now be used to cover the “cost of necessary security enhancements and services” provided to senators, according to language circulated by the Rules Committee. The panel is also expected to “promulgate regulations” and provide senators with guidelines for using their office accounts for this new type of expense.

Jennifer Scholtes contributed to this report.