I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 843 
To require Federal law enforcement officers to wear body cameras, and 
for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 6, 2023 
Ms. NORTON (for herself and Mr. BEYER) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To require Federal law enforcement officers to wear body 
cameras, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Police Camera 
and Accountability Act’’. 
SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS FOR FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT 
OFFICERS REGARDING THE USE OF BODY 
CAMERAS. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
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(1) MINOR.—The term ‘‘minor’’ means any in-
dividual under 18 years of age. 
(2) SUBJECT OF THE VIDEO FOOTAGE.—The 
term ‘‘subject of the video footage’’— 
(A) means any identifiable Federal law en-
forcement officer or any identifiable suspect, 
victim, detainee, conversant, injured party, or 
other similarly situated person who appears on 
the body camera recording; and 
(B) does not include people who only inci-
dentally appear on the recording. 
(3) VIDEO FOOTAGE.—The term ‘‘video foot-
age’’ means any images or audio recorded by a body 
camera. 
(4) FACIAL RECOGNITION OR OTHER BIOMET-
RIC SURVEILLANCE.—The term ‘‘facial recognition 
or other biometric surveillance’’ means an automated 
or semiautomated process that captures or analyzes 
biometric data of an individual to identify or assist 
in identifying an individual or an automated or 
semiautomated process that generates, or assists in 
generating, surveillance information about an indi-
vidual based on biometric data. 
(b) REQUIREMENT TO WEAR BODY CAMERA.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—Federal law enforcement of-
ficers shall wear a body camera. 
(2) REQUIREMENT
FOR
BODY
CAMERA.—A 
body camera required under paragraph (1) shall— 
(A) have a field of view at least as broad 
as the officer’s vision; and 
(B) be worn in a manner that maximizes 
the camera’s ability to capture video footage of 
the officer’s activities. 
(c) REQUIREMENT TO ACTIVATE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Both the video and audio re-
cording functions of the body camera shall be acti-
vated whenever a Federal law enforcement officer is 
responding to a call for service or at the initiation 
of any other law enforcement or investigative stop 
(as such term is defined in section 3) between a 
Federal law enforcement officer and a member of 
the public, except that when an immediate threat to 
the officer’s life or safety makes activating the cam-
era impossible or dangerous, the officer shall acti-
vate the camera at the first reasonable opportunity 
to do so. 
(2) ALLOWABLE
DEACTIVATION.—The body 
camera shall not be deactivated until the stop has 
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fully concluded and the Federal law enforcement of-
ficer leaves the scene. 
(d) NOTIFICATION OF SUBJECT OF RECORDING.—A 
Federal law enforcement officer who is wearing a body 
camera shall notify any subject of the recording that he 
or she is being recorded by a body camera as close to the 
inception of the stop as is reasonably possible. 
(e) REQUIREMENTS.—Notwithstanding subsection 
(c), the following shall apply to the use of a body camera: 
(1) Prior to entering a private residence with-
out a warrant or in non-exigent circumstances, a 
Federal law enforcement officer shall ask the occu-
pant if the occupant wants the officer to discontinue 
use of the officer’s body camera. If the occupant re-
sponds affirmatively, the Federal law enforcement 
officer shall immediately discontinue use of the body 
camera. 
(2) When interacting with an apparent crime 
victim, a Federal law enforcement officer shall, as 
soon as practicable, ask the apparent crime victim if 
the apparent crime victim wants the officer to dis-
continue use of the officer’s body camera. If the ap-
parent crime victim responds affirmatively, the Fed-
eral law enforcement officer shall immediately dis-
continue use of the body camera. 
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(3) When interacting with a person seeking to 
anonymously report a crime or assist in an ongoing 
law enforcement investigation, a Federal law en-
forcement officer shall, as soon as practicable, ask 
the person seeking to remain anonymous, if the per-
son seeking to remain anonymous wants the officer 
to discontinue use of the officer’s body camera. If 
the person seeking to remain anonymous responds 
affirmatively, the Federal law enforcement officer 
shall immediately discontinue use of the body cam-
era. 
(f) RECORDING OF OFFERS TO DISCONTINUE USE 
OF BODY CAMERA.—Each offer of a Federal law enforce-
ment officer to discontinue the use of a body camera made 
pursuant to subsection (e), and the responses thereto, 
shall be recorded by the body camera prior to dis-
continuing use of the body camera. 
(g) LIMITATIONS ON USE OF BODY CAMERA.—Body 
cameras shall not be used to gather intelligence informa-
tion based on First Amendment protected speech, associa-
tions, or religion, or to record activity that is unrelated 
to a response to a call for service or a law enforcement 
or investigative stop between a law enforcement officer 
and a member of the public, and shall not be equipped 
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