[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 158 (Wednesday, October 28, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H12006-H12008]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       FEDERAL JUDICIARY ADMINISTRATIVE IMPROVEMENTS ACT OF 2009

  Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 3632) to provide improvements for the operations of the Federal 
courts, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3632

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Judiciary 
     Administrative Improvements Act of 2009''.

     SEC. 2. SENIOR JUDGE GOVERNANCE CORRECTION.

       (a) In General.--Section 631(a) of title 28, United States 
     Code, is amended in the first sentence by striking 
     ``(including any judge in regular active service'' and all 
     that follows through ``was appointed)''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 3. REVISION OF STATUTORY DESCRIPTION OF THE DISTRICT OF 
                   NORTH DAKOTA.

       (a) In General.--Section 114 of title 28, United States 
     Code, is amended to read as follows:

     ``Sec. 114. North Dakota

       ``North Dakota constitutes one judicial district.
       ``Court shall be held at Bismarck, Fargo, Grand Forks, and 
     Minot.''.
       (b) Current Cases and Juries Not Affected.--
       (1)  Pending cases not affected.--The amendment made by 
     subsection (a) shall not affect any action commenced before 
     the effective date under subsection (c) and pending in the 
     United States District Court for the District of North Dakota 
     on such date.
       (2) Juries not affected.--The amendment made by subsection 
     (a) shall not affect the composition, or preclude the 
     service, of any grand or petit jury summoned, empaneled, or 
     actually serving in the Judicial District of North Dakota on 
     the effective date under subsection (c).
       (c) Effective Date.--This section and the amendment made by 
     this section shall take effect 90 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 4. DISABILITY RETIREMENT AND COST-OF-LIVING ADJUSTMENTS 
                   OF ANNUITIES FOR TERRITORIAL JUDGES.

       (a) In General.--Section 373 of title 28, United States 
     Code, is amended--
       (1) in subsection (c), by amending paragraph (4) to read as 
     follows:
       ``(4) Any senior judge performing judicial duties pursuant 
     to recall under paragraph (2) of this subsection shall be 
     paid, while performing such duties, the same compensation (in 
     lieu of the annuity payable under this section) and the same 
     allowances for travel and other expenses as a judge on active 
     duty with the court being served.'';
       (2) by amending subsection (e) to read as follows:
       ``(e)(1) Any judge of the District Court of Guam, the 
     District Court of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the 
     District Court of the Virgin Islands who is not reappointed 
     (as judge of such court) shall be entitled, upon attaining 
     the age of 65 years or upon relinquishing office if the judge 
     is then beyond the age of 65 years--
       ``(A) if the judicial service of such judge, continuous or 
     otherwise, aggregates 15 years or more, to receive during the 
     remainder of the life of such judge an annuity equal to the 
     salary received when the judge left office; or
       ``(B) if such judicial service, continuous or otherwise, 
     aggregates less than 15 years, to receive during the 
     remainder of the life of such judge an annuity equal to that 
     proportion of such salary that the aggregate number of years 
     of service of such judge bears to 15.
       ``(2) Any judge of the District Court of Guam, the District 
     Court of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the District Court 
     of the Virgin Islands who has served at least 5 years, 
     continuously or otherwise, and who retires or is removed upon 
     the sole ground of mental or physical disability, shall be 
     entitled to receive during the remainder of the life of such 
     judge an annuity equal to 40 percent of the salary received 
     when the judge left office or, in the case of a judge who has 
     served at least 10 years, continuously or otherwise, an 
     annuity equal to that proportion of such salary that the 
     aggregate number of years of judicial service of such judge 
     bears to 15.''; and
       (3) by amending subsection (g) to read as follows:
       ``(g) Any retired judge who is entitled to receive an 
     annuity under this section shall be paid a cost-of-living 
     adjustment as provided under section 8340(b) of title 5, 
     except that in no case may the annuity payable to such 
     retired judge, as increased under this subsection, exceed the 
     salary of a judge in regular active service with the court on 
     which the retired judge served before retiring.''.
       (b) Effective Date.--
       (1) Compensation of recalled judges.--The amendment made by 
     subsection (a)(1) shall apply with respect to judicial duties 
     pursuant to recall that are performed on or after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act.

[[Page H12007]]

       (2) Judges who are not reappointed.--The amendment made by 
     subsection (a)(2) shall apply to a judge who relinquishes 
     office under section 373(e)(1) of title 28, United States 
     Code, as amended by such subsection, or who retires or is 
     removed from office under section 373(e)(2) of such title, as 
     so amended, on or after the date of the enactment of this 
     Act.
       (3) Cost-of-living increases.--The amendment made by 
     subsection (a)(3) shall apply to judges who retire before, 
     on, or after the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 5. ANNUAL LEAVE LIMIT FOR JUDICIAL BRANCH EXECUTIVES.

       (a) In General.--Section 6304(f)(1) of title 5, United 
     States Code, is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (F), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (2) in subparagraph (G), by striking the period and 
     inserting ``; or''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(H) a position in the judicial branch that is designated 
     as a senior executive position--
       ``(i) in the United States courts, by the Judicial 
     Conference of the United States;
       ``(ii) in the Federal Judicial Center, by the Board of the 
     Federal Judicial Center; or
       ``(iii) in the United States Sentencing Commission, by the 
     Commission.''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 6. FEDERAL JUDICIAL CENTER PERSONNEL MATTERS.

       (a) In General.--Section 625 of title 28, United States 
     Code, is amended--
       (1) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
       ``(b) The Director shall appoint and fix the compensation 
     of such additional professional personnel as the Board 
     considers necessary, without regard to the provisions of 
     title 5 governing appointments in competitive service, or the 
     provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of 
     such title relating to classification and General Schedule 
     pay rates, subject to the following:
       ``(1) The compensation of any person appointed under this 
     subsection may not exceed the annual rate of basic pay for 
     level V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of title 
     5, except that the Director may fix the compensation of 4 
     positions of the Center at a level not to exceed the annual 
     rate of pay in effect for level IV of the Executive Schedule 
     under section 5315 of title 5.
       ``(2) The salary of a reemployed annuitant under subchapter 
     III of chapter 83 of title 5 shall be adjusted under section 
     8344 of such title, and the salary of a reemployed annuitant 
     under chapter 84 of title 5 shall be adjusted under section 
     8468 of such title.''.
       (2) in subsection (c), by striking ``, United States 
     Code,''; and
       (3) in subsection (d)--
       (A) by striking ``, United States Code,''; and
       (B) by striking ``General Schedule pay rates, section 5332, 
     title 5, United States Code'' and insert ``the General 
     Schedule under section 5332 of title 5''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 7. SEPARATION OF THE JUDGMENT AND STATEMENT OF REASONS 
                   FORMS.

       (a) In General.--Section 3553(c)(2) of title 18, United 
     States Code, is amended by striking ``the written order of 
     judgment and commitment'' and inserting ``a statement of 
     reasons form issued under section 994(w)(1)(B) of title 28''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 8. PRETRIAL SERVICES FUNCTIONS FOR JUVENILES.

       (a) In General.--Section 3154 of title 18, United States 
     Code, is amended--
       (1) by redesignating paragraph (14) as paragraph (15); and
       (2) by inserting after paragraph (13) the following:
       ``(14) Perform, in a manner appropriate for juveniles, any 
     of the functions identified in this section with respect to 
     juveniles awaiting adjudication, trial, or disposition under 
     chapter 403 of this title who are not detained.''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 9. STATISTICAL REPORTING SCHEDULE FOR CRIMINAL WIRETAP 
                   ORDERS.

       (a) In General.--Section 2519 of title 18, United States 
     Code, is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``Within thirty days'' 
     and all that follows through ``issuing or denying judge'' and 
     inserting ``In January of each year, any judge who has issued 
     an order (or an extension thereof) under section 2518 that 
     expired during the preceding calendar year, or who has denied 
     approval of an interception during that year,'';
       (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``In January of each 
     year'' and inserting ``In March of each year''; and
       (3) in paragraph (3), by striking ``In April of each year'' 
     and inserting ``In June of each year''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 10. THRESHOLDS FOR ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW OF OTHER THAN 
                   COUNSEL CASE COMPENSATION.

       (a) In General.--Section 3006A of title 18, United States 
     Code, is amended--
       (1) in subsection (e)--
       (A) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A), in the second sentence, by 
     striking ``$500'' and inserting ``$800''; and
       (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``$500'' and 
     inserting ``$800''; and
       (B) in paragraph (3), in the first sentence, by striking 
     ``$1,600'' and inserting ``$2,400''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(5) Adjustment of dollar amounts.--
       ``(A) In general.--The dollar amounts provided in 
     paragraphs (2) and (3) shall be adjusted by an amount, 
     rounded to the nearest multiple of $100, equal to the 
     percentage of the cumulative adjustments taking effect under 
     section 5303 of title 5 in the rates of pay under the General 
     Schedule since the date on which the dollar amounts provided 
     in paragraphs (2) and (3), respectively, were last modified 
     by statute.
       ``(B) Effective date.--Each adjustment under subparagraph 
     (A) shall take effect on the same day on which the 
     corresponding adjustment under section 5303 of title 5 takes 
     effect.''.
       (b) Effective Date.--
       (1) Increase in dollar amounts.--The amendments made by 
     subsection (a)(1) shall take effect on the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.
       (2) Annual adjustments.--The amendment made by subsection 
     (a)(2) shall apply with respect to adjustments taking effect 
     under section 5303 of title 5, United States Code, after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Cohen) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe) each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Tennessee.


                             General Leave

  Mr. COHEN. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 
legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include 
extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Tennessee?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. COHEN. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am honored to bring to the floor H.R. 3632, the 
Federal Judiciary Administrative Improvements Act of 2009. This bill 
will enact basic improvements to the Federal courts to ensure that our 
Federal court system is efficient and effective.
  The first section of H.R. 3632 seeks to address an inconsistency in 
the law on the eligibility of senior judges to participate in court 
governance matters. This minor change will ensure that senior judges 
have the ability to participate in the selection of magistrate judges.
  This legislation will also streamline the work of the District of 
North Dakota by eliminating references to divisions while maintaining 
the present situation that North Dakota constitutes one judicial 
district.
  H.R. 3632 will also correct inequalities among the members of the 
judiciary. First, it adjusts the disability retirement coverage and 
cost-of-living annuity adjustments of four territorial judges so that 
these members of the judiciary will be treated like other term judges, 
such as bankruptcy and magistrate judges. Second, this bill will change 
the annual leave limit for judiciary branch executives, and it will 
adjust the pay scale.
  H.R. 3632 also makes some minor adjustments for criminal matters. For 
example, it will improve the control and protection of confidential 
information by allowing the courts to separate the Judgment and 
Statement of Reasons forms. In addition, small changes will clarify the 
scope and authority of Federal pretrial service officers to assist 
juveniles.
  Finally, H.R. 3632 will change the timeline for the statistical 
reporting of criminal wiretapping orders by extending the deadline for 
judges to file these orders, by several months, with the Administrative 
Office of the Courts. Wiretap reports will continue to be provided 
annually to Congress, but this change will ease the administrative 
burden on judges, and it will make those annual reports more accurate.
  This noncontroversial legislation has bipartisan support. It has the 
full backing of the Judicial Conference of the United States, and the 
Senate recently introduced companion legislation. I ask my colleagues 
to join me in supporting this measure.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3632, and I 
yield as much time as he wishes to consume to the ranking member, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith).

[[Page H12008]]

  Mr. SMITH of Texas. I thank my colleague from Texas for yielding, and 
I also thank my colleague on the Judiciary Committee.
  Mr. Speaker, the purpose of H.R. 3632 is to implement 
noncontroversial administrative provisions that the Judicial Conference 
and the House Judiciary Committee believe are necessary to improve the 
operations of the Federal judiciary and to provide justice for the 
American people.
  The Judicial Conference is the policymaking body of the Federal 
judiciary, and through its committee system, it evaluates court 
operations. The Conference endorses all of the provisions in the bill.
  H.R. 3632 affects a wide range of judicial branch programs and 
operations, including those pertaining to financial administration, 
process improvements and personnel administration.
  The bill incorporates nine separate items, which, Mr. Speaker, I 
would like to enter into the Record at this point.

       A section that clarifies that senior judges must satisfy 
     minimum work thresholds to participate in court government 
     matters, including the selection of magistrates.
       A section that eliminates the references to divisions and 
     counties in the statutory description of the Judicial 
     District of North Dakota, which enables the court to better 
     distribute the workload between two active district judges 
     and reduce travel for litigants in the northern central area 
     of the district.
       A section that authorizes the ``statement of reasons'' that 
     judges must issue upon sentencing to be filed separately with 
     the court. Current law requires the statement to be bundled 
     with other information in the case file distributed to the 
     Sentencing Commission, where it can be difficult to maintain 
     a seal related to confidential information.
       A section that specifies that federal pretrial services 
     officers can provide the same services to juveniles as they 
     do for adult offenders. An example would be drug treatment.
       And a section that applies an inflationary index to the 
     threshold amount requiring approval by the chief judge of 
     reimbursements for the cost of hiring expert witnesses and 
     conducting investigations for indigent defendants. The dollar 
     thresholds are statutorily fixed and erode over time. This 
     means chief judges must devote greater time approving what 
     are otherwise not genuine ``high-dollar'' requests.

  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3632 is necessary to improve the functioning of the 
U.S. courts, which will ultimately benefit the American people. This is 
a noncontroversial bill, and I urge my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. POE of Texas. I yield myself as much time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, as the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee has 
noted, Mr. Smith from Texas, H.R. 3632 contains a number of 
administrative improvements to title 28 of the United States Code which 
will improve the operations and efficiency of the Federal judiciary. 
The previous speakers have highlighted many of the provisions set forth 
in H.R. 3632, but I would like to note two specific items:
  First, section 4 of the legislation adjusts the disability retirement 
coverage and COLA adjustments of territorial judges, thereby reducing 
existing inequities between them and other term judges, such as 
magistrate and bankruptcy judges. The CBO estimates that this will not 
result in an increase in direct spending.
  Second, section 5 of the bill extends to senior executives in the 
Federal courts, the Federal Judiciary Center and Sentencing Commission 
the same ability to carry over up to 90 days of annual leave just as 
comparable officials within the executive branch and the Administrative 
Office of the U.S. Courts are treated.
  Mr. Speaker, such changes are obscure but necessary to increase 
efficiency in our Federal courts, and I urge all Members to support the 
bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that this is a noncontroversial, 
bipartisan bill.
  As a Tennesseean who represents the district, which over, maybe, give 
or take, 200 years ago was represented by Davy Crockett, who went to 
Texas and made sure that these two fine gentlemen weren't part of a 
territory or part of a foreign nation, I am proud to work with them to 
see that this legislation comes to the floor.
  Ms. BORDALLO. I rise today in support of the passage of H.R. 3632, 
The Federal Judiciary Administrative Improvements Act of 2009. The 
passage of this bill in the House marks an important step towards 
addressing administrative disparities between federal judges serving 
under the authority of Article IV of the Constitution and Article III 
federal judges. Specifically, section 4 of H.R. 3632 addresses 
disparities in disability retirement and cost of living adjustments of 
annuities for territorial judges. While this bill takes a positive step 
in addressing these disparities, there is still work to be done on this 
issue. The House has previously passed this important legislation and I 
hope the Senate will take up this bill to improve the administration of 
our nation's federal court system.
  I support legislation that addresses these disparities and have 
introduced legislation that calls for more equal treatment of 
territorial federal judges. H.R. 910 addresses one of the disparities 
in treatment of federal judges regarding the specific case of Judge 
John S. Unpingco, who served as Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court 
of Guam but due to the ten year term limit of Article IV judges, did 
not fulfill the service requirement to receive a full annuity. Article 
III judges serve for life.
  I commend Congressman Hank Johnson, as well as Chairman Conyers and 
Ranking Member Smith for their work and leadership on improving our 
nation's federal judiciary and I look forward to working with them in 
the future to further address the issue of disparities of territorial 
federal judges.
  Mr. COHEN. I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Cohen) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 3632.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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