Judicial Understaffing Delays Getting Emergencies Solved Act of 2024

Floor Speech

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Mr. NEHLS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the bipartisan JUDGES Act, which would create 63 permanent Federal district court judgeships and 3 temporary judgeships, including 10 in the great State of Texas and 4 in my district, over the next 10 years.

This bill would also authorize additional courtroom locations in multiple States to improve access for rural residents in large districts, such as the Southern District of Texas.

Simply put, the JUDGES Act is a critical piece of legislation. The population of the United States has increased by 50 million people since the year 2000, and the number of cases pending in Federal trial courts has nearly doubled. Despite this, Congress has not added more Federal judges to the bench since 2004.

Unsurprisingly, this has led to staggering backlogs in Federal courts across the country, which has, in turn, led to litigants losing access to timely justice and a severely overworked judicial bench.

In the Southern District of Texas alone, which encompasses my district, there are over 6,082 civil cases pending and 8,928 criminal cases as of June of this year. A lack of rural courtroom locations also forces Americans to commute for hours a day when called for Federal jury duty or to access the courts. This is unacceptable for our country, and it is incumbent upon Congress to address it.

As a Republican co-lead of this House companion version of the bill, alongside my colleague Representative Issa, this legislation will not only address multiyear case backlogs but will also ensure the administration of justice in a reasonable timeframe.

Mr. Speaker, make no mistake. The sudden opposition to this bill from my friends on the other side of the aisle is nothing more than childish foot stomping. The Democrats know that this is a fair bill, and my colleagues know that it doesn't give any President or party an advantage in appointing judges since they are to be added in six segments over 10 years.

That is why my bill passed out of the House by unanimous consent, why it is supported by Federal judges across the political spectrum, and why House Republicans support this bill regardless of electoral results. Since Democrats are angry over the results of this election, the official Democrat position now seems to be that our Federal trial court system should be left to languish under the weight of crippling backlogs.

This bill is common sense. One of our most basic obligations as a Congress is to oversee the judiciary and ensure it functions well.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to fulfill that obligation and support this legislation.

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