No official summary available for this bill.
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4695 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4695
To regulate law enforcement use of facial recognition technology, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 23, 2025
Mr. Lieu (for himself, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Ivey, and
Mr. Veasey) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on
Science, Space, and Technology, 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 BILL
To regulate law enforcement use of facial recognition technology, and
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Facial Recognition Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. INELIGIBILITY FOR CERTAIN FUNDS.
In the case of a State or unit of local government that received a
grant award under subpart 1 of part E of title I of the Omnibus Crime
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3750 et seq.), if the
State or unit of local government fails to substantially to comply with
the requirements under this Act for a fiscal year, the Attorney General
shall reduce the amount that would otherwise be awarded to that State
or unit of local government under such grant program in the following
fiscal year by 15 percent.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Arrest photo database.--The term ``arrest photo
database'' means a database populated primarily by booking or
arrest photographs or photographs of persons encountered by an
investigative or law enforcement officer.
(2) Candidate list.--The term ``candidate list'' means the
top images that a facial recognition system determines to most
closely match a probe image.
(3) Derived.--The term ``derived'' means that a Federal or
State government would not have possessed the information or
evidence but for the use of facial recognition, regardless of
any claim that the information or evidence is attenuated from
such recognition, and would inevitably have been discovered or
obtained the information or evidence through other means.
(4) Facial recognition.--The term ``facial recognition''
means an automated or semi-automated process that assists in
identifying or verifying an individual or captures information
about an individual based on the physical characteristics of an
individual's face, head or body, or that uses characteristics
of an individual's face, head or body, to infer emotion,
associations, activities, or the location of an individual.
(5) Face surveillance.--The term ``face surveillance''
means the use of facial recognition with real-time or stored
video footage to track, observe, or analyze the movements,
behavior, data, or actions of an individual or groups of
individuals.
(6) Illegitimately obtained information.--The term
``illegitimately obtained information'' means personal data or
information that was obtained--
(A) in a manner that violates Federal, State, or
Tribal law;
(B) in a manner that violates a service agreement
between a provider of an electronic communication
service to the public or a provider of a remote
computing service and customers or subscribers of that
provider;
(C) in a manner that is inconsistent with the
privacy policy of a provider described in subparagraph
(B), if applicable;
(D) by deceiving a person whose information was
obtained;
(E) through the unauthorized access of an
electronic device or online account;
(F) in violation of a contract, court settlement,
or other binding legal agreement; or
(G) from unlawful or unconstitutional practices by
any government official or entity.
(7) Investigative or law enforcement officer.--The term
``investigative or law enforcement officer'' means--
(A) any officer of a State or a political
subdivision thereof, or of the United States, who is
empowered by law to conduct investigations of or to
make arrests for civil or criminal offenses or
violations of Federal or State law and any attorney
authorized by law to prosecute or participate in the
prosecution of such offenses; and
(B) does not include any officer, employee, or
contractor of a State department of motor vehicles.
(8) Law enforcement agency.--The term ``law enforcement
agency'' means any agency of the United States authorized to
engage in or supervise the prevention, detection,
investigation, or prosecution of any violation of civil or
criminal law.
(9) Probe image.--The term ``probe image'' means an image
of a person that is searched against a database of known,
identified persons or an unsolved photo file.
(10) Prosecutor.--The term ``prosecutor'' means the
principal prosecuting attorney of a State or any political
subdivision thereof and any attorney for the Government (as
such term is defined for the purposes of the Federal Rules of
Criminal Procedure).
(11) Operational testing.--The term ``operational testing''
means testing that evaluates a complete facial recognition
system as it is used in the field, including measuring false
positive and false negative error rates for field uses of the
system on operational or operationally representative data and
under the environmental conditions and technical product
settings and configurations typically used, as well as
assessing the variability of system use by different users.
(12) Reference photo database.--The term ``reference photo
database'' means a database populated with photos of
individuals that have been identified, including databases
composed of driver's licenses, passports, or other documents
made or issued by or under the authority of the United States
Government, a State, a political subdivision thereof, databases
operated by third parties, and arrest photo databases.
(13) State.--The term ``State'' means each State of the
United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the
Northern Mariana Islands.
TITLE I--USE OF FACIAL RECOGNITION BY LAW ENFORCEMENT
SEC. 101. FACIAL RECOGNITION.
(a) Reference Photo Databases.--
(1) In general.--An investigative or law enforcement
officer may only use or request facial recognition in
conjunction with a reference photo database pursuant to an
order issued under subsection (b) and the emergencies and
exceptions under subsection (c).
(2) Maintenance.--
(A) In general.--Beginning on 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, and every six months
thereafter, with respect to an arrest photo database
used in conjunction with facial recognition, the
custodian of such arrest photo database shall remove
from such database all photos of each person who--
(i) has not attained 18 years of age;
(ii) has been released without a charge;
(iii) has been released after charges are
dropped or dismissed; or
(iv) was acquitted of the charged offense.
(B) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this
paragraph shall be construed to prohibit an
investigative or law enforcement officer from using a
database for other investigative procedures, such as
finger printing, and shall only apply to the use of a
reference photo database for the use of facial
recognition.
(3) Procedures.--Any agency responsible for maintaining and
operating an arrest photo database shall establish procedures
to ensure compliance with paragraph (3).
(b) Orders.--
(1) Approval.--An application for a warrant to use a
reference photo database may not be submitted for consideration
by a court unless the head of a law enforcement agency (or a
designee) approves such an application.
(2) Authority.--Except as provided by subsection (d), the
principal prosecutor of a State or any political subdivision
thereof and any attorney for the Government (as such term is
defined for the purposes of the Federal Rules of Criminal
Procedure), may make an application to a court of competent
jurisdiction for, in conformity with paragraph (3), an order
authorizing the use of facial recognition in conjunction with a
reference photo database within the jurisdiction of that judge.
(3) Application.--Except as provided in subsection (c), a
court of competent jurisdiction may issue an order authorizing
the use of facial recognition in conjunction with a reference
photo database if a prosecutor submits an application to that
court that establishes the following:
(A) The identity of the investigative or law
enforcement officer making the application, and the
officer authorizing the application.
(B) As full and complete a description as possible
of the person that the officer seeks to identify.
(C) The photos or video portraying the person that
will be used to search the reference photo database.
(D) Any details regarding other investigative
measures taken to identify such person and an
explanation for why such measures failed or are
reasonably unlikely to succeed.
(E) Any other investigative procedures to identify
such person have been tried and failed or are
reasonably unlikely to succeed.
(F) Probable cause to believe that such person has
committed or is committing a particular offense or
offenses enumerated in section 3559(c)(2)(F) of title
18, United States Code.
(4) Contents of order.--The order described in this
paragraph shall include the following:
(A) All information required to be included in the
application pursuant to such paragraph (3).
(B) A prohibition on the use, for purposes of a
search of a reference photo database, other than
pursuant to another order under this Act, of any photo
or video not specifically listed in the order.
(C) A time period within which the search shall be
made not more than 7 days, and after which no such
search may be made, except pursuant to another order
under this Act.
(D) The authority under which the search is to be
made.
(5) Notice to the public.--
(A) In general.--Each State department of motor
vehicles shall post notices in conspicuous locations at
each department office, make written information
available to all applicants at each office, and provide
information on the department website regarding State
investigative or law enforcement officers' searches of
driver's license and ID photos through facial
recognition. The notices, written information, and
online information must describe how officers use and
access facial recognition in criminal investigations.
(B) Language requirement.--Notices required under
subparagraph (A) shall be posted, as necessary and
reasonable, in Spanish or any language common to a
significant portion of the department's customers, if
they are not fluent in English. The department shall
provide translations of the poster and an electronic
link that leads to the department's website upon
request.
(6) Conforming amendments.--Section 2721 of title 18,
United States Code, is amended--
(A) in subsection (a)--
(i) in paragraph (1), by striking the
``or'' at the end;
(ii) in paragraph (2), by striking the
period at the end and inserting ``; or''; and
(iii) by inserting after paragraph (2) the
following:
``(3) a department operated facial recognition system,
except as provided in subsection (f) of this section.'';
(B) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting before the
period at the end the following: ``but if the personal
information or highly restricted personal information
to be disclosed is a person's photograph to be used or
enrolled in a law enforcement facial recognition
system, only on a case-by-case basis that does not
involve the bulk transfer of persons' photographs to a
State or Federal law enforcement agency or a qualified
third party entity that will allow law enforcement to
access those photographs for the purposes of facial
recognition''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(f) Law Enforcement Access to Facial Recognition Systems.--A
State department of motor vehicles, and any officer, employee, or
contractor thereof, may make available a department-operated facial
recognition system to a State or Federal law enforcement agency, or
perform searches of such a system on behalf of the agency, only
pursuant to an order issued under section 101 of the Facial Recognition
Act of 2025.''.
(c) Emergencies and Exceptions.--
(1) Initial use.--Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b),
an investigative or law enforcement officer may use or request
facial recognition in conjunction with a reference photo
database--
(A) to assist in identifying any person who is
deceased, incapacitated or otherwise physically unable
of identifying himself, or the victim of a crime, whom
the officer determines, in good faith, cannot be
identified through other means;
(B) to assist in identifying a person whom the
officer believes, in good faith, is the subject of an
alert through an AMBER Alert communications network, as
that term is used in section 301 of the Prosecutorial
Remedies and Other Tools to end the Exploitation of
Children Today Act of 2003 (34 U.S.C. 20501);
(C) to assist in identifying any person who has
been lawfully arrested, during the process of booking
that person after an arrest or during that person's
custodial detention; or
(D) to assist in identifying any person--
(i) if the appropriate prosecutor
determines that an emergency situation exists--
(I) that involves immediate danger
of death or serious physical injury to
any person; or
(II) that requires the use of
facial recognition in conjunction with
a reference photo database to occur
before an order authorizing such use
can, with due diligence, be obtained;
and
(ii) there are grounds upon which an order
could be entered under this section to
authorize such use.
(2) Subsequent authorization.--If an investigative or law
enforcement officer uses facial recognition pursuant to
paragraph (1)(D), the prosecutor shall apply for an order
approving the use under subsection (b) within 12 hours after
the use occurred. The use shall immediately terminate when the
application for approval is denied, or in the absence of an
application, within 12 hours. In cases where an order is not
obtained or denied, the officer shall destroy all information
obtained as a result of the search.
(3) Affidavit required.--With respect to use of facial
recognition pursuant to paragraph (1)(D), an appropriate
prosecutor shall submit an affidavit to the court identifying
specific details on why they believe that an emergency
situation under clause (i) exists.
(d) State Law Preserved.--The authorities provided by subsections
(b) and (c) do not authorize access reference photo databases
maintained by a State, or a political subdivision of a State, unless
State law expressly and unambiguously authorizes an investigative or
law enforcement officer to--
(1) access driver's license and identification document
photos; and
(2) use facial recognition to conduct searches of those
photos.
SEC. 102. CIVIL RIGHTS AND CIVIL LIBERTIES.
(a) In General.--An investigative or law enforcement officer may
not--
(1) use facial recognition to create a record describing
how any individual exercises rights guaranteed by the
Constitution, including free assembly, association, and speech;
(2) rely on actual or perceived race, ethnicity, national
origin, religion, disability, gender, gender identity, or
sexual orientation in selecting which person to subject to
facial recognition, except when there is trustworthy
information, relevant to the locality and time frame, in the
context of a particular area and for a particular period of
time, that links a person with a particular characteristic
described in this subsection to an identified criminal incident
or scheme; or
(3) use facial recognition to enforce the immigration laws
of the United States or share facial recognition data with
other agencies for the purposes of enforcing the immigration
laws of the United States.
(b) Prohibition on Use With Body Cameras.--Any investigative or law
enforcement officer may not use or request facial recognition in
conjunction with any image obtained from a body camera worn by that or
any other officer, dashboard camera, or any aircraft camera, including
a drone.
(c) Prohibition on Certain Facial Recognition.--Any investigative
or law enforcement officer may not use or request facial recognition
for the purpose of face surveillance.
(d) Ensuring Corroboration and Preventing Over Reliance on
Matches.--A facial recognition match may not be the sole basis upon
which probable cause is established for a search, arrest, or other law
enforcement action. Any investigative and law enforcement officers
using information obtained from the use of facial recognition shall
examine results with care and consider the possibility that matches
could be inaccurate.
(e) Prohibition on Illegitimately Obtained Information.--An
investigative or law enforcement office may not use facial recognition
in conjunction with a database that contains illegitimately obtained
information.
SEC. 103. LOGGING OF SEARCHES.
A law enforcement agency whose investigative or law enforcement
officers use facial recognition shall log its use of the facial
recognition to the extent necessary to comply with the public reporting
and audit requirements of sections 104 and 105 of this Act.
SEC. 104. REPORTING.
(a) State Reporting Required.--
(1) State judiciary.--Not later than the last day of the
first January after the date of the enactment of this Act, and
each January thereafter, each State judge who has issued a
court order authorizing or approving facial recognition in
conjunction with a reference photo database shall report to a
State agency (as determined by the chief executive of the
State) the following information:
(A) The number of orders or extensions was applied
for.
(B) Whether the order or extension was issued
pursuant to section 101(b) or section 102(c).
(C) Whether the order or extension was granted as
applied for, was modified, or was denied.
(D) The offense specified in the order or
application, or extension of an order.
(E) The identity of the applying investigative or
law enforcement officer and agency making the
application and the person authorizing the application.
(F) For orders issued pursuant to section 101(c),
the reference photo database that was searched.
(2) Prosecutors.--Not later than the last day of the first
January after the date of the enactment of this Act, and each
January thereafter, each State prosecutor, or a prosecutor of a
political subdivision thereof, who has requested a court order
authorizing or approving facial recognition in conjunction with
a reference photo database shall report to a State agency (as
determined by the chief executive of the State) the following
information with respect to the use of facial recognition in
conjunction with an reference photo database:
(A) The number of such searches run.
(B) The offenses that those searches were used to
investigate, and for each offense, the number of
searches run.
(C) The arrests that such searches contributed to,
and the offenses for which the arrests were made,
disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and age.
(D) The number of convictions that such searches
contributed to and the offenses for which the
convictions were obtained, disaggregated by race,
ethnicity, gender, and age.
(E) The number of motions to suppress made with
respect to those searches, and the number granted or
denied.
(F) The types and names of databases that were used
and the number of photos removed with respect to arrest
photo databases that were confirmed to have been
removed in accordance with this section.
(3) Report to bureau of justice assistance.--Not later than
90 days after such report is submitted under paragraph (1), and
annually thereafter, the State agency shall report the
information collected under paragraph (1) to the Director of
the Bureau of Justice Assistance.
(4) Report to administrative office of the united states
courts.--Not later than 90 days after such report is submitted
under paragraph (2), and annually thereafter, the State agency
shall report the information collected under paragraph (2) to
the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States
Courts.
(b) Federal Reporting Required.--Not later than the last day of the
first January after the date of the enactment of this Act, and each
January thereafter--
(1) each Federal judge who has issued a court order
authorizing or approving facial recognition in conjunction with
a reference photo database shall submit to the Director of the
Administrative Office of the United States Courts a report
including the information under subparagraphs (A) through (F)
of subsection (a)(1); and
(2) and a Federal prosecutor who requested such order,
shall submit to the Director of the Administrative Office of
the United States Courts a report including the information
under subparagraphs (A) through (G) of subsection (a)(2).
(c) Public Reporting.--In June of each year the Director of the
Administrative Office of the United States Courts shall release to the
public, post online, and transmit to the Congress a full and complete
report concerning the use of facial recognition in conjunction with
reference photo databases, including the information reported to the
Director pursuant to subsections (a) and (b).
(d) Rules.--The Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance and
the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts
shall issue rules with respect to the content and form of the reports
required to be filed under subsections (a) through (c) of this section
and sections 105 and 106 of this Act.
SEC. 105. AUDITS.
(a) Federal Level Audit.--
(1) In general.--Any Federal law enforcement agency whose
investigative or law enforcement officers use facial
recognition, regardless of whether they use a system operated
by that agency or another agency, shall annually submit data
with respect to their use of facial recognition for audit by
the Government Accountability Office to prevent and identify
misuse and to ensure compliance with sections 101, 102, and 103
of this Act, including--
(A) a summary of the findings of the audit,
including the number and nature of violations
identified; and
(B) information about the procedures used by the
law enforcement agency to remove arrest photos from
databases in accordance with this Act.
(2) Suspension.--
(A) In general.--If a violation is uncovered by the
audit conducted under paragraph (1), the Federal law
enforcement agency shall cease using facial recognition
until such time that all violations have been
corrected.
(B) Public notice.--If use of facial recognition is
suspended pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Federal law
enforcement agency shall notify the public of such
suspension.
(b) State Level Audit.--
(1) In general.--Any State or local law enforcement agency
whose investigative or law enforcement officers use facial
recognition, regardless of whether they use a system operated
by that agency or another agency, shall annually submit data
with respect to their use of facial recognition to an
independent State agency (as determined by the chief executive
of the State) to prevent and identify misuse and to ensure
compliance with sections 101, 102, and 103 of this Act. Such
independent State agency shall report--
(A) a summary of the findings of the audit,
including the number and nature of violations
identified, to Director of the Administrative Office of
the United States Courts, and subsequently release that
information to the public and post it online;
(B) information about the procedures used by the
law enforcement agency to remove arrest photos from
databases in accordance with this section; and
(C) any violations identified by the independent
State agency.
(2) Suspension.--
(A) In general.--If a violation is uncovered by the
audit conducted under paragraph (1), the State or local
law enforcement agency shall cease using facial
recognition until such time that all violations have
been corrected.
(B) Public notice.--If use of facial recognition is
suspended pursuant to subparagraph (A), the State or
local law enforcement agency shall notify the public of
such suspension.
(c) Disaggregated Data.--Data collected pursuant to subsection (a)
or (b) shall, when feasible, be collected in a manner that allows such
data to be disaggregated by race, ethnicity, gender, and age.
SEC. 106. ACCURACY AND BIAS TESTING.
(a) Benchmark Testing.--No investigative or law enforcement
officers may use a facial recognition system or information derived
from it unless that system is annually submitted to the National
Institute of Standards and Technology's benchmark facial recognition
test for law enforcement to determine--
(1) the accuracy of the system; and
(2) whether the accuracy of the system varies significantly
on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender or age.
(b) Benchmark Testing for New Systems.--No investigative or law
enforcement officers may begin using a new facial recognition system or
information derived from it unless that system is first submitted to
independent testing to determine--
(1) the accuracy of the system; and
(2) whether the accuracy of the system varies significantly
on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, or age.
(c) Prohibition.--Any investigative or law enforcement officer may
not use facial recognition that has not achieved a sufficiently high
level of accuracy, including in terms of overall accuracy and variance
on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, or age, as determined by the
National Institute of Standards and Technology, on its annual benchmark
test for law enforcement use.
(d) Operational Testing.--No investigative or law enforcement
agencies may use a facial recognition system or information derived
from it unless that system is annually submitted to operational testing
conducted by an independent entity, in accordance with National
Institute of Standards and Technology's training protocol for
operational testing, to determine--
(1) the accuracy of the system;
(2) the impact of human reviewers on system accuracy; and
(3) whether the accuracy of the system varies significantly
on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, or age.
(e) Reporting.--A summary of the findings of the tests required by
subsection (a) or (d) shall be submitted to the Director of the
Administrative Office of the United States Courts and posted on the
internet website of the Administrative Office of the United States
Courts.
(f) Rulemaking Required.--The Assistant Attorney General of the
Department of Justice Civil Rights Division shall issue a rule that
establishes what is a sufficiently high level of accuracy for a facial
recognition system used by law enforcement, including in terms of
overall accuracy and variance on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender,
and age. The Assistant Attorney General of the Department of Justice
Civil Rights Division shall consult with outside experts in civil
rights, civil liberties, racial justice, data privacy, bioethics, law
enforcement, public defense, and forensic science and other relevant
areas of expertise in drafting the proposed rule.
(g) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect 18 months after
the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 107. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Suppression.--In the case that the use of facial recognition
has occurred, no results from the use and no evidence derived therefrom
may be received in evidence in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding
in or before any court, grand jury, department, officer, agency,
regulatory body, legislative committee, or other authority of the
United States, a State, or a political subdivision thereof if the use
of facial recognition violated this Act or if the use was conducted in
an emergency under section 101 and the officer or agency did not
subsequently obtain an order for that use as required under such
section.
(b) Administrative Discipline.--If a court or law enforcement
agency determines that an investigative or law enforcement officer has
violated any provision of this Act, and the court or agency finds that
the circumstances surrounding the violation raise serious questions
about whether or not the officer acted intentionally with respect to
the violation, the agency shall promptly initiate a proceeding to
determine whether disciplinary action against the officer is warranted.
(c) Civil Action.--
(1) In general.--Any person who is subject to
identification or attempted identification through facial
recognition in violation of this Act may bring a civil action
in the appropriate court to recover such relief as may be
appropriate from the investigative or law enforcement officer
or the State or Federal law enforcement agency which engaged in
that violation.
(2) Relief.--In an action under this subsection,
appropriate relief includes--
(A) such preliminary and other equitable or
declaratory relief as may be appropriate;
(B) damages under paragraph (3) and punitive
damages in appropriate cases; and
(C) a reasonable attorney's fee and other
litigation costs reasonably incurred.
(3) Computation of damages.--The court may assess as
damages whichever is the greater of--
(A) any profits made with respect to the violation
suffered by the plaintiff; or
(B) $50,000 for each violation.
(4) Defense.--A good faith reliance on--
(A) a court warrant or order, a grand jury
subpoena, a legislative authorization, or a statutory
authorization; or
(B) a good faith determination that section 101
permitted the conduct complained of,
is a complete defense against any civil action brought under
this Act.
(5) Limitation.--A civil action under this section may not
be commenced later than two years after the date upon which the
claimant first has a reasonable opportunity to discover the
violation.
(d) Civil Action for Disparate Impact.--An individual may bring a
civil action when use of facial recognition or face surveillance by a
law enforcement agency, or any technological element, criteria, method,
or design feature thereof acting individually or in concert, results in
disparate treatment or adverse impact against an individual or class of
individuals on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, or age.
SEC. 108. NOTICE REQUIREMENT.
(a) Notice Requirement.--A law enforcement agency that uses facial
recognition to attempt to identify an individual who is arrested shall,
at minimum, provide to the individual--
(1) a notice of--
(A) the name the law enforcement agency that
operated the facial recognition system used; and
(B) the name of the database, if any, that was used
to identify the individual; and
(2) a copy of--
(A) the order that authorized the use of facial
recognition;
(B) accuracy or bias reports required under this
Act;
(C) each probe image that was used by the agency;
(D) any modifications made to the probe image;
(E) the candidate list, in rank order, produced by
the facial recognition system; and
(F) any other police documentation related to the
use of facial recognition in the law enforcement
investigation.
(b) Language Requirement.--The information required under
subsection (a) shall be provided to such individual in an appropriate
language for such individual if the individual is not fluent or
literate in English.
TITLE II--CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS AND LIMITATIONS ON FACIAL RECOGNITION
SYSTEMS AND RESEARCH
SEC. 201. NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANCE.
(a) In General.--The National Institute of Standards and Technology
(hereinafter in this section referred to as ``NIST'') shall--
(1) develop best practices for law enforcement agencies to
evaluate the accuracy and fairness of their facial recognition
systems;
(2) develop and offer an ongoing benchmark facial
recognition test for law enforcement that--
(A) conducts evaluations of actual algorithms used
by law enforcement agencies;
(B) uses the types of probe images, including in
terms of quality, actually used by law enforcement
agencies in its testing;
(C) evaluates algorithms on larger databases that
reflect the size of databases actually used by law
enforcement; and
(D) evaluates whether the accuracy of a facial
recognition algorithm varies on the basis of race,
ethnicity, gender, or age and assessments of bias in
facial recognition systems;
(3) develop an operational testing protocol that
independent testers and law enforcement agencies may implement
for annual operational testing to determine--
(A) the accuracy of the facial recognition system;
(B) the impact of human reviewers on facial
recognition system accuracy; and
(C) whether the accuracy of the facial recognition
system varies significantly on the basis of race,
ethnicity, gender, or age; and
(4) study and develop training standards for human
operators reviewing the results of facial recognition searches
to ensure accuracy and prevent bias.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the National Institute of Standards and Technology to
carry out subsection (a) $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2026
through 2029.
SEC. 202. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION WITH RESPECT TO STATE AND LOCAL PRIVACY
PROTECTIONS.
(a) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed
to preempt concurrent or more stringent limitations on the use of
facial recognition, or any other privacy, civil rights, and civil
liberties laws and rules, by the Federal Government, a State, or a
political subdivision of a State.
(b) Use of Facial Recognition.--Nothing in this Act shall be
construed to authorize the use of facial recognition by a State, or a
political subdivision of a State, unless the laws of that State or
political subdivision expressly and unambiguously authorizes such use.
SEC. 203. POLICY ON USE OF FACIAL RECOGNITION SYSTEMS REQUIRED.
Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act,
each agency covered by this statute shall establish and make publicly
available on the internet website of such agency a policy governing the
agency's use of facial recognition systems to ensure investigative or
law enforcement officer compliance with the requirements of this Act.
SEC. 204. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.
A State shall not be immune under the eleventh amendment to the
Constitution of the United States from an action in Federal or State
court of competent jurisdiction for a violation of this Act. In any
action against a State for a violation of the requirements of this Act,
remedies (including remedies both at law and in equity) are available
for such a violation to the same extent as such remedies are available
for such a violation in an action against any public or private entity
other than a State.
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Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, 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 Science, Space, and Technology, 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.
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