[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 178 (Tuesday, December 3, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H6213-H6214]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
AMENDING TITLE 28, UNITED STATES CODE, TO AUTHORIZE HOLDING COURT FOR
THE CENTRAL DIVISION OF UTAH IN MOAB AND MONTICELLO
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 8666) to amend title 28, United States Code, to authorize
holding court for the Central Division of Utah in Moab and Monticello.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 8666
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. JUDICIAL DISTRICT.
Section 125 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by
striking ``and St. George'' and inserting ``St. George, Moab,
and Monticello.''
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Issa) and the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
General Leave
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on H.R. 8666.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, our Federal courts are critical to ensuring that
Americans have access to justice. The Central Division of the District
of Utah is currently authorized to hold court only in Salt Lake City,
Provo, and St. George. For residents of southeastern Utah, however,
traveling to those courthouses is burdensome and requires hours of
driving, and it affects their ability to access the Federal court
system.
H.R. 8666 addresses these issues at essentially no cost to the U.S.
Government. The bill authorizes the Central Division of the District of
Utah to hold court in Moab and Monticello in southeastern Utah, in
addition to those other locations allowed by law.
In addition, this will be free of cost because the District of Utah
already has agreements in place with State and county courthouses in
those cities. Those facilities are being provided at no cost to the
Federal Government because they are in the best interests of the people
of Utah.
These changes, which have been requested by the District of Utah, are
endorsed by the Judicial Conference of the United States and the United
States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. In fact, it is also
endorsed by the U.S. Attorney's Office and the Federal Public
Defender's Office for the District of Utah.
Madam Speaker, I strongly urge the passage of this bill, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 8666, which would
amend title 28 of the United States Code to
[[Page H6214]]
authorize holding court in the Central Division of Utah in Moab and
Monticello.
Adding two additional places to hold court in the Central Division of
Utah would help ameliorate the consequential barriers to jury service
and court attendance faced by the Federal courts in southeastern Utah.
Moab and Monticello are geographically remote, making it difficult for
Americans in those communities to readily exercise their Seventh
Amendment rights.
We are here today because it makes no sense that litigants should
incur dramatically increased travel time and administrative costs to
seek justice just because someone lives far from the nearest big city.
Every day, the ratio of Federal judges to Americans decreases as our
population continues to increase. That means that every day our
constituents are a little less protected by the United States court
system than they were the day before.
Legislation like this bill will help alleviate the burdens of our
court system, and it is widely popular on both sides of the aisle. That
is no small feat.
Congress first organized Utah as one judicial district in 1894 with
one authorized judgeship. The State's steady growth prompted Congress
to add four additional judgeships over the last 100-plus years and to
increase the number of places to hold court in Utah. We are at another
such inflection point today.
This bill before us has been requested by the local Federal district,
as well as the Judicial Conference, to meet this moment. Small steps,
such as passing this bill today, are positive moves in the right
direction to help the people of Utah gain equal access to justice.
I thank Congresswoman Maloy and Congressman Curtis for sponsoring
this legislation to improve the lives of the residents of Utah, and I
encourage all of my colleagues to support the bill.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the
gentlewoman from Utah (Ms. Maloy).
Ms. MALOY. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, H.R.
8666, to amend title 28, United States Code, to authorize the holding
of court for the Central Division of Utah in Moab and Monticello, Utah.
I start by thanking my colleagues for their comments and support.
Madam Speaker, allowing the Federal court to meet in Monticello and
Moab allows all types of civil and criminal court proceedings in
southeastern Utah, particularly jury trials.
Jury summonses for Utahns in this part of the State require a five-
hour drive one way from places like Blanding to Salt Lake City, and
that is a little over 300 miles.
Some criminal cases have to be heard more than four hours from where
the crime occurred, and then witnesses, law enforcement, and victims
bear the burden of that travel, as do the U.S. marshals when they
transport defendants in criminal cases for jury trials.
This area would also serve the Navajo Nation in the Four Corners part
of Utah, where Federal courts have special jurisdiction. Important
civil cases require the same kind of travel arrangements.
Madam Speaker, last week in southwestern Utah, I personally was able
to witness the investiture of the first Federal judge dedicated
specifically to southwestern Utah. I have seen how much that means to
those communities in my district, where they can have their day in
court and where they have a court in their community. They feel like
they have a connection to the judicial system, and that is a really
important part of maintaining faith in our institutions and faith in
our judicial system. I love to see us working toward getting
southeastern Utah the same opportunity.
Our courts are an indispensable part of our Constitution for
peacefully resolving our disputes and for administering justice. I am
proud to say that this bill helps ensure that rural Utahns have ready
access to justice, the judicial branch of their government, and the
court system.
Madam Speaker, I thank my fellow Utahns for their support and urge my
House colleagues to pass H.R. 8666.
{time} 1445
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Madam Speaker, Americans deserve accessible
courts close to their homes. There is no reason litigants should incur
dramatically increased travel time and administrative costs to seek
justice just because someone lives far from the nearest large city.
Adding two additional places to hold court in the Central Division of
Utah would make the system just a little bit fairer for the people who
live there.
Madam Speaker, for that reason, I urge all Members to support the
bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Madam Speaker, in closing, this is yet another bill that says a great
deal about the way Members of Congress know their districts. Members of
Congress travel their districts. They understand the needs of it, so
when a Congresswoman like Ms. Maloy comes to us, she comes knowing what
she needs and has already done the homework, both in traveling and in
working with the Judicial Conference.
This is yet another example where the right answer comes from the
people closest to the people, the individual Representatives. The
committee is proud and happy to support this commonsense change.
Madam Speaker, I urge support of the underlying bill, and I yield
back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 8666.
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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