119-hr634

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 634 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 634

 To amend title 28, United States Code, to provide for the appointment 
 of additional Federal circuit judges, to divide the Ninth Judicial 
Circuit of the United States into two judicial circuits, and for other 
 purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 January 22, 2025

 Mr. Simpson (for himself and Mr. Fulcher) introduced the following 
 bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To amend title 28, United States Code, to provide for the appointment 
 of additional Federal circuit judges, to divide the Ninth Judicial 
Circuit of the United States into two judicial circuits, and for other 
 purposes.

 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 ``Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals 
Judgeship and Reorganization Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

 In this Act--

    (1) the term ``former ninth circuit'' means the ninth 
 judicial circuit of the United States as in existence on the 
 day before the effective date of this Act;

    (2) the term ``new ninth circuit'' means the ninth judicial 
 circuit of the United States established by the amendment made 
 by 

section 3

    (2)
        (A) ; and

    (3) the term ``twelfth circuit'' means the twelfth judicial 
 circuit of the United States established by the amendment made 
 by 

section 3

    (2)
        (B) .

SEC. 3. NUMBER AND COMPOSITION OF CIRCUITS.

 

Section 41 of title 28, United States Code, is amended--

    (1) in the matter preceding the table, by striking 
 ``thirteen'' and inserting ``fourteen''; and

    (2) in the table--
        (A) by striking the item relating to the ninth 
 circuit and inserting the following:

``Ninth.................................. California, Guam, Hawaii,
 Northern Mariana Islands.'';

 and
        (B) by inserting after the item relating to the 
 eleventh circuit the following:

``Twelfth................................ Alaska, Arizona, Idaho,
 Montana, Nevada, Oregon,
 Washington.''.

SEC. 4. JUDGESHIPS.

    (a) New Judgeships.--

    (1) For former ninth circuit.--The President shall appoint, 
 by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, 2 additional 
 circuit judges for the former ninth circuit. The official duty 
 station of a judge appointed under this paragraph shall be in 
 Arizona, California, or Nevada.

    (2) For new ninth circuit.--The President shall appoint, by 
 and with the advice and consent of the Senate, 3 circuit judges 
 for the new ninth circuit. The judges authorized by this 
 paragraph shall not be appointed before January 21, 2025.

    (b) Temporary Judgeships.--

    (1) Appointment of judges.--The President shall appoint, by 
 and with the advice and consent of the Senate, 2 additional 
 circuit judges for the former ninth circuit. The official duty 
 station of a judge appointed under this paragraph shall be in 
 Arizona, California, or Nevada.

    (2) Effect of vacancies.--The first 2 vacancies occurring 
 on the new ninth circuit 10 years or more after judges are 
 first confirmed to fill both temporary circuit judgeships 
 created by this subsection shall not be filled.
            (c) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date of 
the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 5. NUMBER OF CIRCUIT JUDGES.

 The table contained in 

section 44

    (a) of title 28, United States 
Code, is amended--

    (1) by striking the item relating to the ninth circuit and 
 inserting the following:

``Ninth.................................................... 25'';

 and

    (2) by inserting after the item relating to the eleventh 
 circuit the following:

``Twelfth.................................................. 9''.

SEC. 6. PLACES OF CIRCUIT COURT.

 The table contained in 

section 48

    (a) of title 28, United States 
Code, is amended--

    (1) by striking the item relating to the ninth circuit and 
 inserting the following:

``Ninth.................................. Honolulu, San Francisco,
 Pasadena.'';

 and

    (2) by inserting after the item relating to the eleventh 
 circuit the following:

``Twelfth................................ Phoenix, Seattle.''.

SEC. 7. ASSIGNMENT OF CIRCUIT JUDGES.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection

    (b) , each circuit 
judge of the former ninth circuit who is in regular active service and 
whose official duty station on the day before the effective date of 
this Act--

    (1) is in California, Guam, Hawaii, or the Northern Mariana 
 Islands shall be a circuit judge of the new ninth circuit as of 
 such effective date; and

    (2) is in Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, 
 or Washington shall be a circuit judge of the twelfth circuit 
 as of such effective date.

    (b) Special Rule To Ensure Statutory Distribution of Judges.--If 
the assignment of judges under subsection

    (a) would result in a number 
of judges in either the new ninth circuit or the twelfth circuit that 
exceeds the number provided for that circuit in the table contained in 

section 44

    (a) of title 28, United States Code, as amended by 

section 5 
of this Act, then a number of judges accounting for such excess who are 
the least senior in commission shall be assigned to the other circuit.

SEC. 8. ELECTION OF ASSIGNMENT BY SENIOR JUDGES.

 Each judge who is a senior circuit judge of the former ninth 
circuit on the day before the effective date of this Act may elect to 
be assigned to the new ninth circuit or to the twelfth circuit as of 
such effective date, and shall notify the Director of the 
Administrative Office of the United States Courts of such election.

SEC. 9. SENIORITY OF JUDGES.

 The seniority of each judge--

    (1) who is assigned under 

section 7, or

    (2) who elects to be assigned under 

section 8,
shall run from the date of commission of such judge as a judge of the 
former ninth circuit.

SEC. 10. APPLICATION TO CASES.

 The following apply to any case in which, on the day before the 
effective date of this Act, an appeal or other proceeding has been 
filed with the former ninth circuit:

    (1) If the matter has been submitted for decision, further 
 proceedings with respect to the matter shall be had in the same 
 manner and with the same effect as if this Act had not been 
 enacted.

    (2) If the matter has not been submitted for decision, the 
 appeal or proceeding, together with the original papers, 
 printed records, and record entries duly certified, shall, by 
 appropriate orders, be transferred to the court to which the 
 matter would have been submitted had this Act been in full 
 force and effect at the time such appeal was taken or other 
 proceeding commenced, and further proceedings with respect to 
 the case shall be had in the same manner and with the same 
 effect as if the appeal or other proceeding had been filed in 
 such court.

    (3) A petition for rehearing or a petition for rehearing en 
 banc in a matter decided before the effective date of this Act, 
 or submitted before the effective date of this Act and decided 
 on or after such effective date as provided in paragraph

    (1) , 
 shall be treated in the same manner and with the same effect as 
 though this Act had not been enacted. If a petition for 
 rehearing en banc is granted, the matter shall be reheard by a 
 court comprised as though this Act had not been enacted.

SEC. 11. TEMPORARY ASSIGNMENT OF CIRCUIT JUDGES BETWEEN CIRCUITS.

 

Section 291 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsections:
 ``
            (c) The chief judge of the ninth circuit may, in the public 
interest and upon request by the chief judge of the twelfth circuit, 
designate and assign temporarily any circuit judge of the ninth circuit 
to act as circuit judge in the twelfth circuit.
 ``
            (d) The chief judge of the twelfth circuit may, in the public 
interest and upon request by the chief judge of the ninth circuit, 
designate and assign temporarily any circuit judge of the twelfth 
circuit to act as circuit judge in the ninth circuit.''.

SEC. 12. TEMPORARY ASSIGNMENT OF DISTRICT JUDGES BETWEEN CIRCUITS.

 

Section 292 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsections:
 ``

    (f) The chief judge of the ninth circuit may in the public 
interest--
 ``

    (1) upon request by the chief judge of the twelfth 
 circuit, designate and assign one or more district judges 
 within the ninth circuit to sit upon the Court of Appeals of 
 the Twelfth Circuit or a division thereof whenever the business 
 of that court so requires; and
 ``

    (2) designate and assign temporarily any district judge 
 of the ninth circuit to hold a district court in any district 
 within the twelfth circuit.
 ``

    (g) The chief judge of the twelfth circuit may in the public 
interest--
 ``

    (1) upon request by the chief judge of the ninth circuit, 
 designate and assign one or more district judges within the 
 twelfth circuit to sit upon the Court of Appeals of the Ninth 
 Circuit or a division thereof whenever the business of that 
 court so requires; and
 ``

    (2) designate and assign temporarily any district judge 
 of the twelfth circuit to hold a district court in any district 
 within the ninth circuit.
 ``

    (h) Any designation and assignment of a judge under subsection

    (f)

    (1) or

    (g)

    (1) shall be in conformity with the rules or orders of the 
court of appeals of the circuit to which the judge is designated and 
assigned.''.

SEC. 13. ADMINISTRATIVE COORDINATION.

 

Section 332 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsection:
 ``
            (i) Any 2 contiguous circuits may jointly carry out such 
administrative functions and activities as the judicial councils of the 
2 circuits determine may benefit from coordination or consolidation.''.

SEC. 14. ADMINISTRATION.

 The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit as 
constituted on the day before the effective date of this Act may take 
such administrative action as may be required to carry out this Act and 
the amendments made by this Act. Such court shall cease to exist for 
administrative purposes upon the expiration of the 2-year period 
beginning on the effective date of this Act.

SEC. 15. EFFECTIVE DATE.

 Except as provided in 

section 4
            (c) , this Act and the amendments 
made by this Act shall take effect on the first day of the first fiscal 
year that begins after the expiration of the 9-month period beginning 
on the first date on which 5 of the judges authorized to be appointed 
under 

section 4 have been confirmed by the United States Senate.

SEC. 16. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out this Act, including funds for additional court 
facilities.
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