What This Bill Does
This bill changes how judges get appointed to District of Columbia courts. Instead of the President nominating judges for Senate approval, the President would appoint judges directly from a list provided by the District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission. Congress would get a 30-day window to block any appointment with a joint resolution (a formal statement of disapproval passed by both the House and Senate).
Who It Affects
The President of the United States, the District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President pro tempore of the Senate (the highest-ranking senator from the majority party), and judges of the District of Columbia courts.
Key Provisions
• The President appoints judges directly from candidates recommended by the District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission instead of nominating them for Senate confirmation (Sec. 2(a)(1))
• Notice of each judge appointment must be sent to the Speaker of the House and the President pro tempore of the Senate (Sec. 3(a))
• Appointments become effective after 30 calendar days pass (not counting weekends, holidays, or days when Congress is adjourned) unless Congress passes a joint resolution disapproving the appointment (Sec. 3(b))
• Congress can use expedited procedures to consider resolutions of disapproval, meaning there are special fast-track rules for voting on whether to block an appointment (Sec. 3(c))
• If the President fails to appoint a recommended candidate, the Judicial Nomination Commission can appoint that candidate directly (Sec. 2(b)(4))
What Changes
If this bill becomes law, judges would be appointed by the President without needing Senate approval. Instead, Congress as a whole would have 30 days to reject an appointment through a joint resolution. The term "nomination" would be replaced with "appointment" throughout the District of Columbia Home Rule Act (the law governing D.C. courts). Current judge nominees pending when the bill passes would be treated as if the President or Commission had already transmitted their appointment notice on the day the bill becomes law.
Important Definitions
None defined in the bill text.
Effective Date
The bill applies to judge appointments made on or after the date the bill becomes law (Sec. 4(a)).
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 483
To amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to provide for the
automatic appointment of judges to the District of Columbia courts
without the advice and consent of the Senate, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 24, 2023
Ms. NORTON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Oversight and Accountability, and in addition to the Committee
on Rules, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic-
tion of the committee concerned
A BILL
To amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to pro-
vide for the automatic appointment of judges to the
District of Columbia courts without the advice and con-
sent of the Senate, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘District of Columbia
4
Courts Judicial Vacancy Reduction Act’’.
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•HR 483 IH
SEC. 2. AUTOMATIC APPOINTMENT OF JUDGES TO DIS-
1
TRICT OF COLUMBIA COURTS.
2
(a) APPOINTMENTS BY PRESIDENT.—
3
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 433(a) of the Dis-
4
trict of Columbia Home Rule Act (sec. 1–204.33(a),
5
D.C. Official Code) is amended by striking ‘‘the
6
President shall nominate’’ and all that follows and
7
inserting the following: ‘‘from the list of persons rec-
8
ommended by the District of Columbia Judicial
9
Nomination Commission established under section
10
434, the President shall appoint all judges of the
11
District of Columbia courts.’’.
12
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 433
13
of such Act (sec. 1–204.33, D.C. Official Code) is
14
further amended—
15
(A) in the heading, by striking ‘‘NOMINA-
16
TION AND’’;
17
(B) in subsection (b) in the matter pre-
18
ceding paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘nominated
19
or’’;
20
(C) in paragraph (2) of subsection (b), by
21
striking ‘‘nomination’’ and inserting ‘‘appoint-
22
ment’’;
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(D) in paragraph (3) of subsection (b), by
24
striking ‘‘nomination’’ and inserting ‘‘appoint-
25
ment’’;
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•HR 483 IH
(E) in paragraph (4) of subsection (b), by
1
striking ‘‘the President, for such nomination
2
and appointment,’’ and inserting ‘‘the President
3
for such appointment’’;
4
(F) in paragraph (5) of subsection (b), by
5
striking ‘‘his nomination’’ and inserting ‘‘ap-
6
pointment’’;
7
(G) in the fifth sentence of subsection (c),
8
by striking ‘‘then the President may nominate’’
9
and all that follows and inserting ‘‘the Presi-
10
dent may reappoint such candidate as judge.’’;
11
(H) in the sixth sentence of subsection (c),
12
by striking ‘‘not to so nominate such declaring
13
candidate, he shall nominate another can-
14
didate’’ and inserting ‘‘not to so reappoint such
15
declaring candidate, the President shall appoint
16
another candidate’’; and
17
(I) in the seventh sentence of subsection
18
(c), by striking ‘‘then the President shall not
19
submit to the Senate for advice and consent the
20
renomination of the declaring candidate as
21
judge’’ and inserting ‘‘the President shall not
22
reappoint the declaring candidate as judge’’.
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•HR 483 IH
(3) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con-
1
tents of such Act is amended by amending the item
2
relating to section 433 to read as follows:
3
‘‘Sec. 433. Appointment of judges.’’.
(b) APPOINTMENTS BY JUDICIAL NOMINATION COM-
4
MISSION.—Section 434(d) of such Act (sec. 1–204.34(d),
5
D.C. Official Code) is amended—
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(1) in the first sentence of paragraph (1), by
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striking ‘‘for possible nomination and appointment’’
8
and inserting ‘‘for possible appointment’’;
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(2) in the second sentence of paragraph (1), by
10
striking ‘‘more than one nominee’’ and inserting
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‘‘more than one person’’;
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(3) in the third sentence of paragraph (1), by
13
striking ‘‘of nominees’’;
14
(4) in the fourth sentence of paragraph (1)—
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(A) by striking ‘‘the President fails to
16
nominate, for Senate confirmation,’’ and insert-
17
ing ‘‘the President fails to appoint’’; and
18
(B) by striking ‘‘the Commission shall
19
nominate, and with the advice and consent of
20
the Senate, appoint’’ and inserting ‘‘the Com-
21
mission shall appoint’’; and
22
(5) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘nomination’’
23
each place it appears and inserting ‘‘appointment’’.
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•HR 483 IH
SEC. 3. AUTHORIZING CONGRESS TO PREVENT APPOINT-
1
MENT
THROUGH
RESOLUTION
OF
DIS-
2
APPROVAL.
3
(a) RESOLUTIONS OF DISAPPROVAL.—Part C of title
4
IV of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act (sec. 1–
5
204.31 et seq., D.C. Official Code) is amended by insert-
6
ing after section 434 the following new section:
7
‘‘AUTHORIZING CONGRESS TO PREVENT APPOINTMENT
8
THROUGH RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL
9
‘‘SEC. 434A. (a) REQUIRING TRANSMISSION OF NO-
10
TICE OF APPOINTMENT TO CONGRESS.—Notice of the ap-
11
pointment of a judge of a District of Columbia court under
12
this part shall be transmitted to the Speaker of the House
13
of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the
14
Senate by—
15
‘‘(1) the President, in the case of an appoint-
16
ment under section 433; or
17
‘‘(2) the District of Columbia Judicial Nomina-
18
tion Commission, in the case of an appointment
19
under section 434(d)(1).
20
‘‘(b) TIMING OF APPOINTMENT.—The appointment
21
of a judge of the District of Columbia courts shall take
22
effect upon the expiration of the 30-calendar-day period
23
(excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, and any day
24
on which neither House is in session because of an ad-
25
journment sine die, a recess of more than three days, or
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•HR 483 IH
an adjournment of more than three days) beginning on
1
the date on which notice of the appointment is transmitted
2
to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the
3
President pro tempore of the Senate under subsection (a),
4
unless during such 30-calendar-day period there has been
5
enacted into law a joint resolution disapproving of the ap-
6
pointment.
7
‘‘(c) APPLICATION OF EXPEDITED PROCEDURES FOR
8
CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTIONS OF DISAPPROVAL OF
9
COUNCIL ACTS TO CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTIONS OF
10
DISAPPROVAL OF APPOINTMENT OF JUDGES.—
11
‘‘(1) APPLICATION OF PROCEDURES.—The pro-
12
visions of section 604 shall apply with respect to a
13
joint resolution described in paragraph (2) in the
14
same manner and to the same extent as such provi-
15
sions apply to a joint resolution which is described
16
in section 604(b) and which disapproves an act of
17
the District of Columbia Council which is trans-
18
mitted pursuant to section 602(c)(1).
19
‘‘(2) RESOLUTIONS DESCRIBED.—A resolution
20
described in this paragraph is a resolution, the mat-
21
ter after the resolving clause of which is as follows:
22
‘That the llllllll disapproves of the ap-
23
pointment of llllllll as a judge of the
24
llllllll.’, with the first blank filled in
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•HR 483 IH
with the name of the House of Congress involved,
1
the second blank filled in with the name of the indi-
2
vidual involved, and the third blank filled in with the
3
name of the District of Columbia court involved, but
4
does not include any resolution which specifies more
5
than one action.’’.
6
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents
7
of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating
8
to section 434 the following new item:
9
‘‘Sec. 434A. Authorizing Congress to prevent appointment through resolution of
disapproval.’’.
SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.
10
(a) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by this
11
Act shall apply with respect to appointments of judges of
12
the District of Columbia courts which are made on or after
13
the date of the enactment of this Act.
14
(b) TRANSITION RULE FOR CURRENT NOMINEES.—
15
Section 434A of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act
16
(as added by section 3(a)) shall apply with respect to an
17
individual whose nomination as a judge of the District of
18
Columbia courts is pending as of the date of the enact-
19
ment of this Act as follows:
20
(1) In the case of an individual nominated by
21
the President under section 433 of such Act (as in
22
effect prior to the effective date of this Act), the
23
President shall be deemed to have transmitted notice
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•HR 483 IH
of the appointment of the individual as a judge of
1
the District of Columbia courts to the Speaker of
2
the House of Representatives and the President pro
3
tempore of the Senate on the date of the enactment
4
of this Act.
5
(2) In the case of an individual nominated by
6
the District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Com-
7
mission under section 434 of such Act (as in effect
8
prior to the effective date of this Act), the Commis-
9
sion shall be deemed to have transmitted notice of
10
the appointment of the individual as a judge of the
11
District of Columbia courts to the Speaker of the
12
House of Representatives and the President pro
13
tempore of the Senate on the date of the enactment
14
of this Act.
15
Æ
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