[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 96 (Thursday, June 26, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S8729]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LEVIN:
  S. 1338. A bill to decrease the matching funds requirement and 
authorize additional appropriations for Keweenaw National Historical 
Park in the State of Michigan; to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the Keweenaw National Historical Park bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1338

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. FUNDING FOR KEWEENAW NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK.

       (a) Matching Funds.--Section 8(b) of Public Law 102-543 (16 
     U.S.C. 410yy-7(b)) is amended by striking ``$4'' and 
     inserting ``$1''.
       (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 10(a) of 
     Public Law 102-543 (16 U.S.C. 410yy-9(a)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``$25,000,000'' and inserting 
     ``$50,000,000''; and
       (2) by striking ``$3,000,000'' and inserting 
     ``$25,000,000''.

  Mr. GRAHAM of Florida. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce 
legislation that will authorize additional judgeships in the Middle and 
Southern Federal Judicial Districts of Florida.
  Additional judgeships are needed in these two districts in order to 
deal with a large volume of filings, heavy pending caseloads, the 
considerable number of senior judges, and a rapidly growing population. 
It is vital that we add two additional permanent and one temporary 
judgeship in the Middle District and four additional permanent 
judgeships in the Southern District of Florida.
  Florida's Middle District is one of the busiest Federal district 
courts in the Nation. In 2001 it was ranked fifth in the Nation for the 
number of criminal defendants charged with fraud and drug related 
offenses among all district courts. It handles cases filed in three of 
the four largest cities in the State of Florida, Jacksonville, Orlando 
and Tampa, which comprise 60 percent of the State's population.
  In 1999 four judges were added to the Middle District of Florida. The 
numbers of weighted filings and pending caseload both decreased in 
2000. However, numbers quickly rose again in 2001. A biennial judgeship 
survey conducted in 2003 showed that in 2001 there were 553 weighted 
filings in this district versus the national average of 490. In 
addition, the United States Department of Justice has identified 
Central Florida as a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Enforcement Area.
  The Southern and Middle Districts are parallel in some of the 
challenges that they face. Despite the additional judgeships that were 
created in the Southern District in 2001, the amount of weighted 
filings continues to rise. Since 1994, civil and criminal filings per 
judgeship have stayed above the national average, with civil filings 
rising by 67 percent and criminal filings increasing by 58 percent. 
Many of these increases in criminal filings are linked to the increase 
in fraud, drugs, firearms and immigration prosecutions.
  The administration of justice will continue to be a challenge in 
Florida's Federal courts unless adequate resources are committed. It is 
projected that by 2015 Florida may surpass third-ranked New York in 
population. As the population increases, so do the number of people 
seeking justice from the Federal courts in our State. I ask that my 
colleagues join me in supporting this important legislation.
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