[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 132 (Wednesday, July 28, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E835]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 INTRODUCTION OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COURTS VACANCY REDUCTION ACT

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                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 28, 2021

  Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the District of 
Columbia Courts Vacancy Reduction Act. This bill would allow local 
District of Columbia court nominees to be seated after a 30-day 
congressional review period unless a resolution of disapproval is 
enacted into law during that period. Currently, nominees cannot be 
seated without affirmative Senate approval. The congressional review 
process for nominees would be the same as used for legislation passed 
by the D.C. Council. It is therefore a reliable process, long-
recognized by Congress. My bill is prompted by the unique requirement 
that judges for the local D.C. courts be confirmed by the Senate, where 
nominees for the federal courts and executive branch, understandably, 
get the primary focus and priority. There has been a longstanding 
vacancy crisis facing the District's local criminal and civil courts, 
and the local D.C. courts have raised serious concerns about these 
longstanding vacancies.
  Whether Democrats or Republicans control the Senate, the local D.C. 
courts regularly face vacancy crises, which harm the operations of the 
local judicial system in the District. Congress created the D.C. 
Judicial Nomination Commission (JNC) to recommend candidates to the 
President, and Congress should generally defer to its judgment. This 
bill is a compromise, useful to all concerned, that retains a 
congressional role while saving the Senate time by removing the need 
for committee and floor action on local judges and increasing the odds 
that D.C. will have a full complement of local judges.
  Currently, there are 12 vacancies out of 62 authorized judges on the 
D.C. Superior Court and three vacancies out of nine authorized judges 
on the D.C. Court of Appeals.
  Both pre- and post-home rule, the District has never had control over 
the nomination and approval of local D.C. judges. My bill would not 
alter the role of the JNC or the President in the nomination process. 
Under the Home Rule Act, the JNC recommends to the President a list of 
three candidates for each vacancy on the Superior Court and the Court 
of Appeals. The President must nominate a candidate recommended by the 
JNC within 60 days to the Senate for advice and consent. If the 
President fails to nominate such a person within 60 days, the JNC must 
nominate a recommended person directly to the Senate for advice and 
consent. The Senate has no obligation to provide its advice and 
consent. Under this bill, once a nomination has been transmitted to 
Congress, the nomination would be deemed approved unless a resolution 
of disapproval is enacted into law during a 30-day review period.
  I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

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