[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 26 (Monday, February 12, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S1854]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. AKAKA (for himself, Mr. Voinovich, and Mr. Lieberman):
  S. 550. A bill to preserve existing judgeships on the Superior Court 
of the District of Columbia; to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, today I rise to introduce legislation that 
would preserve existing seats on the District of Columbia Superior 
Court. I am pleased that Senators Voinovich and Lieberman are joining 
me in this effort.
  As my colleagues know, the Superior Court is the trial court of 
general jurisdiction over local matters in the District of Columbia. 
When a vacancy on the court occurs, the District of Columbia Judicial 
Nominations Commission solicits applicants to fill the vacancy and 
sends three names to the President. The President then selects one 
candidate and sends the individual's nomination to the Senate for 
confirmation. Existing law caps the total number of judges on the 
Superior Court at 59.
  However, the District of Columbia Family Court Act of 2001 created 
three new seats for the Family Court, which is a division of the 
Superior Court, but failed to increase the overall cap on the number of 
judges seated on the court. As a result, three existing seats in the 
other divisions of the court--including the criminal, civil, probate, 
and tax divisions--were effectively eliminated. Therefore, when 
vacancies in those divisions occur, new judges cannot be seated.
  Ever since the Family Court Act became law, the Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs Committee and the Senate has been in the untenable 
position of delaying the confirmation of judicial nominees when the cap 
has been reached. The end result is that residents of DC will face 
delay of justice due to a lack of judicial personnel.
  The bill we introduce today would address this problem by amending 
the DC Code to increase the cap on the number of associate judges on 
the Superior Court. Similar legislation introduced by my good friend 
Senator Collins in both the 108th and 109th Sessions of Congress was 
favorably reported by the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs and passed by the Senate. I urge my colleagues to 
once again support this important legislation.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the legislation be printed 
in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                 S. 550

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

     SECTION 1. COMPOSITION OF SUPERIOR COURT.

       Section 903 of title 11 of the District of Columbia Code is 
     amended by striking ``fifty-eight'' and inserting ``61''.
                                 ______