Appropriations for FY2005: Commerce, Justice, State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Page: 57 of 94
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CRS-50
"unclear what funding the Senate will decide upon," noting that "[o]ver the past two
years, the Senate slashed increases proposed by the House."
In a related development, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee,
Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) wrote to the chairman and ranking member of the Senate
Appropriations Committee to urge sufficient funding for the Judiciary in FY2005.
"A hard freeze," Senator Hatch said, "would truly cripple the federal Judiciary in the
coming year, and for years to come." The Senator acknowledged that the
Appropriations Committee faces a "difficult task" in FY2005. "Nonetheless," he
added, "I ask that as the Committee proceeds, it considers the fact that a fully
operational federal Judiciary contributes significantly to the security and stability of
our country. Judiciary funding should be considered a priority. Iurge, at a minimum
the courts' funding for FY2005 be sufficient to allow for current services and
operations to be continued."
Subsequently, on July 8, 2004, the full House, in its passage of H.R. 4754,
followed the recommendation of its Appropriations Committee in approving $5.55
billion for the Judiciary. The House-passed bill made no changes in any of the
Judiciary budget accounts approved earlier by the Appropriations Committee.
During Congress' ensuing August recess, the Judicial Conference, the policy-
making body of the federal Judiciary, unanimously adopted a resolution regarding the
Judiciary's FY2005 budget. The resolution, adopted on August 18, 2004, urged
Congress and the President to exempt the judicial branch from any FY2005
continuing resolution and to provide full-year FY2005 funding for the Judiciary at
least at the current services level approved in H.R. 4754, the House-passed CJS bill.
The resolution stated that it was "imperative" that an exemption from any continuing
resolution be provided by October 1, 2004. "To remain at the same funding level at
the beginning of FY2005,"the Judicial Conference said, "would require the judiciary
to begin unprecedented action: cutting operating expenses by 50 percent and either
firing or furloughing 10 to 20 percent of all judiciary staff, the equivalent of 2,000
to 5,000 probation, pretrial services, and clerks' office employees. This action would
be necessary due to the uncertainty of time and amount of a full-year appropriation."
Shortly after Congress reconvened in September, the Chief Justice William H.
Rehnquist reiterated the concerns of the Judicial Conference in identical letters sent
to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and Senate Democratic Leader Thomas A.Daschle. In the September 13, 2004 letter, the Chief Justice requested that Congress
take timely action to provide funds needed by the federal judiciary for FY2005 "to
meet its constitutional and statutory responsibilities." The Chief Justice said he was
making this request because of reports that Congress might adjourn for the upcoming
elections "without passing an appropriations bill for the judicial branch and that
funding for the federal courts would be included in a long-term continuing resolution
(CR)." He added that the Judicial Conference was "very concerned that, under such
a CR, the courts would have to operate at FY2004 funding levels for up to five
months until Congress enacts a final appropriations bill." This, he said, "amounts
to a hard freeze in appropriations that would be devastating to the judiciary."
Two days later, on September 15, 2004, the Senate Appropriations Committee
approved its CJS bill, S. 2809, which provided $5.36 billion for the Judiciary in
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Fergusson, Ian F. & Epstein, Susan B. Appropriations for FY2005: Commerce, Justice, State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies, report, January 12, 2005; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metacrs7885/m1/57/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.