Introduction of the District of Columbia Courts Judicial Vacancy Reduction Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today, I introduce the District of Columbia Courts Judicial Vacancy Reduction Act. This bill would expedite the appointment of local D.C. judges. The sole purpose of this bill is to protect public safety and promote justice by ending the perpetual judicial vacancy crisis in the local D.C. courts.

The longstanding judicial vacancy crisis in the local D.C. courts, which delays resolution of criminal and civil cases, has existed regardless of which party controls the presidency and Senate because presidents and senators are, understandably, more focused on nominees to the federal courts and the executive branch than to the local D.C. courts.

This bill has nothing to do with D.C. statehood or home rule. Although D.C. will control the local D.C. courts when it becomes a state and Congress could--and should--give D.C. control over the local D.C. courts now, this bill would not give D.C. any new authority over the local D.C. courts.

Under the D.C. Home Rule Act, D.C. has no control over the organization or jurisdiction of the local D.C. courts, including the nomination and appointment of judges. A 7-member commission, which is comprised of federal, D.C. and private-sector appointees, submits to the president a list of 3 persons for each vacancy on the local D.C. courts. The president must nominate, and, with the advice and consent of the Senate, appoint 1 person from the list. If the president fails to nominate 1 of the persons from the list within 60 days, the commission must nominate, and, with the advice and consent of the Senate, appoint 1 of the persons from the list.

This bill would not change the role of the president or the commission in the appointment of local D.C. judges. Instead, it would apply the congressional review period for D.C. legislation to the appointment of local D.C. judges. Upon nomination, local D.C. judges would be appointed after the expiration of a 30-day congressional review period, unless a resolution disapproving of the appointment was enacted into law during that period.

Local D.C. judges are non-Article III judges. The Constitution only requires Senate approval of Article III judges--that is, judges on the federal district courts, the federal appeals courts and the U.S. Supreme Court. Congress has the discretion to decide how non-Article III judges will be appointed, and has chosen to subject some non- Article III judges to Senate approval, but not others. For example, Congress has not given itself any role in the appointment of bankruptcy or administrative law judges. This bill would strike a middle ground. Congress would retain the authority to block the appointment of local D.C. judges, but it would only have a limited time period to do so.

I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

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