H.R. 503 — Qualified Immunity Act of 2025

This section states congressional findings on qualified immunity, including that (1) it is intended for all but the plainly incompetent or those who knowingly violate the law and to give government officials breathing room to make reasonable mistakes of fact and law; and (2) it balances the need to hold law enforcement officers accountable when they exercise power irresponsibly with the need to shield officers from harassment, distraction, and liability when they perform their duties reasonably.

This section amends the civil rights statute (42 U.S.C. 1983), which authorizes civil suits against state and local officials acting under color of law for depriving persons of constitutional or federal rights, to codify qualified immunity protections for law enforcement officers by (1) designating the existing text as subsection (a); (2) adding subsection (b) to shield an officer sued individually from liability if the officer proves the right was not clearly established at the time or a final court decision upheld the specific conduct as lawful, and to shield the officer's employing agency or local government unit from liability if the officer is not liable and was acting within the scope of employment; and (3) adding subsection (c) defining "law enforcement officer" (i.e., any federal, state, tribal, or local official authorized to prevent, detect, investigate, or incarcerate violations of law with arrest powers) and "law enforcement agency" (i.e., any such public agency with arrest powers). These changes take effect 180 days after enactment.