Bankruptcy Judgeship Act Of 2010

Floor Speech

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Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support H.R. 4506 an act to amend the federal judicial code to authorize the appointment of additional permanent bankruptcy judges in various states. This legislation was introduced by Representative Cohen, my colleague from Tennessee. As a member of the judiciary committee, I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

As Chair of the Courts and Competition Policy subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee, I have long championed the increase in federal judgeships across the United States. In this Congress, I introduced H.R. 3663, The Federal Judgeship Act of 2009, which would have done exactly this: increase the number of federal judges.

The U.S. is also in need of more bankruptcy judges. According to Michael J. Melloy, Chair of the Judicial Conference Committee on the Administration of the Bankruptcy System, ``Additional judgeships are critical to ensure that the bankruptcy courts have sufficient judicial resources to effectively and efficiently adjudicate the rights and responsibilities of parties in bankruptcy cases and proceedings''. New bankruptcy judgeships have not been authorized by Congress since 1992, yet case filings have increased by 61 percent.

The current recession has had an adverse effect on the Bankruptcy Court system. The courts are now faced with much more complex and time-consuming bankruptcy cases, not to mention an increase in volume of cases. This has led to more cases per judge than they are able to handle. It is therefore necessary that we act and authorize additional bankruptcy judges.

In addition to authorizing new judges, H.R. 4506 would also convert certain temporary offices of bankruptcy judges to permanent offices, extend certain temporary offices of bankruptcy judges, reduce the amount of bankruptcy fees to be deposited as offsetting collections to the United States Trustee System Fund, and increase bankruptcy filing fees. All of this would lead to a better and more efficient bankruptcy judicial system.

My state of Georgia has the third highest personal bankruptcy rate in the nation. According to the National Bankruptcy Research Center, Georgia's federal bankruptcy courts handled 66,925 filings during the first 11 months of 2009. This was 22 percent higher than the same period of 2008. This resolution will give the bankruptcy judicial system the resources necessary to review cases in a thorough yet timely manner, and turn the hectic bankruptcy process into a much more manageable one. I urge my colleagues to join me in support of this legislation, and vote in the affirmative for H.R. 4506, the Bankruptcy Judgeship Act of 2010.

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