1
JUDGES Act of 2025
4/3/2025, 6:41 PM
Summary of Bill HR 1702
The purpose of this legislation is to address the growing caseloads in the district courts and ensure that there are enough judges to handle the workload efficiently. By authorizing additional district judges and converting temporary judgeships into permanent positions, the bill aims to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the judicial system.
The bill outlines the process for appointing and confirming the additional district judges, as well as the criteria for converting temporary judgeships into permanent positions. It also includes provisions for funding the new judgeships and ensuring that they are allocated appropriately based on the caseloads of the district courts. Overall, the District Judgeship Act is aimed at improving the functioning of the district courts by providing them with the necessary resources to handle their caseloads effectively. It is an important piece of legislation that seeks to ensure that the judicial system is able to deliver justice in a timely and efficient manner.
Congressional Summary of HR 1702
Judicial Understaffing Delays Getting Emergencies Solved Act of 2025 or the JUDGES Act of 2025
This bill creates 64 U.S. district court judgeships—63 permanent and 1 temporary—and expands the jurisdictional coverage of two district courts.
Specifically, the bill creates 63 new permanent judgeships across 14 states over a 10-year period beginning in 2025. The state and total number of judgeships added over the 10-year period are as follows:
- Arizona (1),
- California (20),
- Colorado (2),
- Delaware (2),
- Florida (9),
- Georgia (2),
- Idaho (1),
- Indiana (1),
- Iowa (1),
- Nebraska (1),
- New Jersey (3),
- New York (5),
- Oklahoma (2), and
- Texas (13).
Additionally, the bill creates one temporary judgeship in the Eastern District of Oklahoma in 2025.
Finally, the bill adds locations where court must be held in two district courts—one in California and one in Texas. Specifically, the bill adds College Station to the list of places where court must be held in the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas. Also, the bill adds El Centro to the list of places where court must be held in the Southern District of California.
The bill directs the Government Accountability Office to submit reports to Congress on judicial caseloads and detention space.
The bill also directs the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to make available on its website the biennial report by the Judicial Conference of the United States on judgeship recommendations.
Read the Full Bill
Current Status of Bill HR 1702
Bipartisan Support of Bill HR 1702
Total Number of Sponsors
1Democrat Sponsors
0Republican Sponsors
1Unaffiliated Sponsors
0Total Number of Cosponsors
20Democrat Cosponsors
5Republican Cosponsors
15Unaffiliated Cosponsors
0Policy Area and Potential Impact of Bill HR 1702
Primary Policy Focus
LawAlternate Title(s) of Bill HR 1702
Comments
Chaim White
11 months ago
Not a fan of it. This will impact us all.
