[House Document 108-161]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                     

108th Congress, 2d Session - - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 108-161
 
             REQUESTS FROM THE JUDICIAL BRANCH FOR FY 2004

                               __________

                             COMMUNICATION

                                  from

                   THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              transmitting

             REQUESTS FROM THE JUDICIAL BRANCH FOR FY 2004




  February 24, 2004.--Referred to the Committee on Appropriations and 
                         ordered to be printed
                                           The White House,
                                     Washington, February 11, 2004.
Hon. J. Dennis Hastert,
Speaker of the House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Speaker: As a matter of comity, I am transmitting 
to the Congress the enclosed requests from the Judicial Branch 
for FY 2004.
    The details of there requests are set forth in the enclosed 
letter from the Director of the Office of Management and 
Budget.
            Sincerely,
                                                    George W. Bush.
                [Estimate No. 1, 108th Cong., 2d Sess.]

                 Executive Office of the President,
                           Office of management and Budget,
                                  Washington, DC, February 6, 2004.
The President,
The White House.
    Submitted for your consideration for transmittal to the 
Congress are two FY 2004 proposals that have been requested by 
the Judicial Branch.
    The Judicial Branch's requests would provide a total of 
$55.6 million for the Courts of Appeals and District Courts, 
including: $39.2 million for salaries and expenses, to maintain 
existing staffing levels and to meet technology requirements; 
and $16.4 million for private panel attorneys who provide 
defender services.
    I recommend that, as a matter of comity, you transmit these 
proposals as submitted by the Judicial Branch to the Congress.
            Sincerely,
                                          Joshua B. Bolten,
                                                          Director.
    Enclosures.

Judicial Branch--Courts of Appeals, District Courts, and Other Judicial 
                                Services


                           DEFENDER SERVICES

    For an additional amount for ``Defender Services,'' 
$16,423,000, to remain available until expended.
    This request would provide additional funding to compensate 
private panel attorneys, due to a higher-than-anticipated 
number of Criminal Justice Act (CJA) representations. When the 
FY 2004 Budget request was submitted in February 2003, the 
Judicial Branch estimated 58,600 CJA panel attorney 
representations, its current FY 2004 projection is 65,100. If a 
defendant qualifies for representation under the provisions of 
the CJA, the representation is assigned by the presiding judge 
either to a Federal defender organization or to a private panel 
attorney. The number of representations is driven by the number 
of defendants that qualify for representation under the CIA.
    Without this additional funding, the Judiciary asserts that 
panel attorney payments would be stopped for approximately the 
last three weeks of September 2004.
    This proposal would increase FY 2004 outlays by $16 
million.

Judicial Branch--Courts of Appeals, District Courts, and Other Judicial 
                                Services


                         SALARIES AND EXPENSES

    For an additional amount for ``Salaries and Expenses,'' 
$39,243,000, to remain available until expended.
    This request would provide additional funds to the Salaries 
and Expenses account of the Courts of Appeals, District Courts, 
and other Judicial Services. In FY 2003, the Senate confirmed 
28 more Article III judges than the Administrative Office of 
the United States Courts had estimated. The Judicial Branch 
asserts that the across-the-board reductions in P.L. 108-199, 
the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2004, along with the 
increase in the number of Article III judges, may result in the 
need to implement involuntary separations and furloughs and to 
reduce infrastructure and automation expenses below anticipated 
levels.
    The Judiciary asserts that this request would allow it to 
maintain existing staffing levels and meet technology 
requirements, as well as restore some reductions made to the 
non-salary portion of their budget.
    This proposal would increase FY 2004 outlays by $35 
million.