Bill > HR7046

This bill, titled the "Qualified Immunity Abolition Act of 2026," proposes to eliminate the legal defense of qualified immunity for federal, state, and local law enforcement officers when they are sued under Section 1979 of the Revised Statutes, commonly known as 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Qualified immunity is a legal protection that shields government officials from liability in civil lawsuits unless their conduct violates clearly established statutory or constitutional rights, and there is no reasonable way for them to have known their actions were unlawful. This bill would amend Section 1979 to explicitly state that it is not a defense for an officer to argue they were acting in good faith, believed their conduct was lawful, that the rights violated were not clearly established, or that they could not have reasonably known their conduct was unlawful. Furthermore, the bill would extend the provisions of Section 1979 to apply to federal law enforcement officers acting under federal authority, making them similarly liable for civil rights violations.

Justice

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7046/all-info