[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 135 (Tuesday, September 13, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1614-E1615]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 APPEAL TIME CLARIFICATION ACT OF 2011

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 12, 2011

  Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of 
H.R. 2633, the Appeal Time Clarification Act of 2011. This legislation 
provides an important clarification to the law.
  Under the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, the law allows 60 
days to file a notice of appeal for civil cases if the United States or 
a federal officer is a party. However, the legislation fails to 
disclose whether the 60 day period applies to current and/or former 
federal employees who are sued in an individual capacity.
  The Appeal Time Clarification Act of 2011 performs as a means to 
clarify the discrepancies created by the initial policy. It essentially 
amends the federal judicial code requirements concerning the time 
limits for the filing of appeals to any judgment, order, or decree in a 
civil action, suit, or proceeding.
  According to the Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate, as 
ordered by the House Committee on the Judiciary, H.R. 2633 would have 
no significant impact on the federal budget. The CBO estimates that 
enacting the bill ``would not affect direct spending or revenues; 
therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.''
  There are no solid concerns that have been raised in the House 
regarding this legislation. However, the Senate Judiciary Committee has 
expressed its observation that the bill's language regarding individual 
capacity lawsuits

[[Page E1615]]

may be read in such a way as to exclude those cases where the 
individual is represented by the Senate Legal Counsel or the House 
Office of General Counsel rather than the Department of Justice (for 
example, in a lawsuit between the legislative and executive branches 
concerning executive privilege).
  Summarily H.R. 2633 extends the 60 day filing deadline to any civil 
action, suit, or proceeding in which one of the parties is ``a current 
or former U.S. officer or employee sued in an individual capacity for 
an act. This amendment provides the government with the time it needs 
to review the case, determine whether an appeal should be taken, and 
secure the Solicitor General's approval for that appeal. These same 
policy reasons apply in a case where the United States--through DOJ or 
some other federal litigating entity--decides to represent a current or 
former officer or employee sued in his or her individual capacity.
  I applaud my friend from Michigan, Ranking Member of the Judiciary 
Committee for introducing this important legislation to protect past 
and present federal employees. I urge my colleagues to lend their 
support to the bill.

                          ____________________