II

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 486

To reorganize the Federal administrative law judiciary, and for other

purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MARCH 2 (legislative day, FEBRUARY 22), 1995

Mr. HEFLIN (for himself, Mr. SPECTER, Mr. FORD, Mr. THURMOND, Mr.

BUMPERS, Mr. BROWN, Mr. SIMON, Mr. SHELBY, Ms. MOSELEY-BRAUN,

and Mr. COHEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and

referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To reorganize the Federal administrative law judiciary, and

for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Reorganization of the

5 Federal Administrative Judiciary Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress finds that—

8 (1) in order to promote efficiency, productivity,

9 the reduction of administrative functions, and to
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1 provide economies of scale and better public service

2 and public trust in the administrative resolution of

3 disputes, Federal administrative law judges should

4 be organized in a unified corps;

5 (2) the dispersal of administrative law judges

6 appointed under section 3105 of title 5, United

7 States Code, in every Federal agency that requires

8 hearings to be conducted by administrative law

9 judges, underutilizes the potential of administrative

10 law judges to serve the public and assist the Federal

11 courts as special masters and finders of fact in spe12 cific instances to help reduce the backlog of cases in

13 Federal courts;

14 (3) the organization of administrative law

15 judges in a corps will best promote their assignment

16 to Federal agency needs as demand requires;

17 (4) a unified administrative law judge corps will

18 better promote the use of information technology in

19 serving the public; and

20 (5) an administrative law judge corps will,

21 through consolidation, eliminate unnecessary offices

22 and reduce travel and other related costs.
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1 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE

2 CORPS.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title 5, United

4 States Code, is amended by adding at the end thereof the

5 following new subchapter:

6 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER VI—ADMINISTRATIVE LAW

7 JUDGE CORPS

8 ‘‘§ 597. Definitions

9 ‘‘For the purposes of this subchapter—

10 ‘‘(1) ‘agency’ means an authority referred to in

11 section 551(1);

12 ‘‘(2) ‘Corps’ means the Administrative Law

13 Judge Corps of the United States established under

14 section 598;

15 ‘‘(3) ‘administrative law judge’ means an ad16 ministrative law judge appointed under section 3105

17 on or before the effective date of the Reorganization

18 of the Federal Administrative Judiciary Act or

19 under section 599c after such effective date;

20 ‘‘(4) ‘chief judge’ means the chief administra21 tive law judge appointed and serving under section

22 599;

23 ‘‘(5) ‘Council’ means the Council of the Admin24 istrative Law Judge Corps established under section

25 599b;
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1 ‘‘(6) ‘Board’, unless otherwise indicated, means

2 the Complaints Resolution Board established under

3 section 599e; and

4 ‘‘(7) ‘division chief judge’ means the chief ad5 ministrative law judge of a division appointed and

6 serving under section 599a.

7 ‘‘§ 598. Establishment; membership

8 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established an Ad9 ministrative Law Judge Corps consisting of all adminis10 trative law judges, in accordance with the provisions of

11 subsection (b). Such Corps shall be administered in Wash12 ington, D.C.

13 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.—An administrative law judge

14 serving as such on the date of the commencement of the

15 operation of the Corps shall be transferred to the Corps

16 as of that date. An administrative law judge who is ap17 pointed on or after the date of the commencement of the

18 operation of the Corps shall be a member of the Corps

19 as of the date of such appointment.

20 ‘‘§ 599. Chief administrative law judge

21 ‘‘(a) APPOINTMENT; TERM.—The chief administra22 tive law judge shall be the chief administrative officer of

23 the Corps and shall be the presiding judge of the Corps.

24 The chief judge shall be appointed by the President, by

25 and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The chief
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1 judge shall be learned in the law. The chief judge shall

2 serve for a term of five years or until a successor is ap3 pointed and qualifies to serve. A chief judge may be

4 reappointed upon the expiration of the term of such judge,

5 by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.

6 ‘‘(b) VACANCIES.—(1) If the office of chief judge is

7 vacant, the division chief judge who is senior in length of

8 service as a member of the Council shall serve as acting

9 chief judge until such vacancy is filled.

10 ‘‘(2) If 2 or more division chief judges have the same

11 length of service as members of the Council, the division

12 chief judge who is senior in length of service as an admin13 istrative law judge shall serve as such acting chief judge.

14 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL FUNCTIONS OF CHIEF JUDGE.—(1) In

15 addition to other duties conferred on the chief judge, the

16 chief judge shall be responsible for developing programs

17 and practices, in coordination with agencies using admin18 istrative law judges, which foster economy and efficiency

19 in the processing of cases heard by administrative law

20 judges. These programs and practices shall include—

21 ‘‘(A) training of judges in more than one sub22 ject area;

23 ‘‘(B) employment of computers and software

24 and other information technology for automated de25 cision preparation, case docketing, and research;
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1 ‘‘(C) consolidating hearing facilities and law li2 braries; and

3 ‘‘(D) programs and practices to foster overall

4 efficient use of staff, personnel, equipment, and fa5 cilities.

6 ‘‘(2) In order to minimize costs—

7 ‘‘(A) all administrative law judges and support

8 personnel shall, for at least 1 year after the date of

9 the commencement of the operation of the Corps,

10 continue to use the office space and facilities, at the

11 agencies using such judges and personnel, available

12 before such date, and

13 ‘‘(B) the chief judge shall phase in transfers of

14 administrative law judges and support personnel to

15 other facilities so that the cost of providing facilities

16 for the Corps shall not exceed the cost of maintain17 ing such judges and personnel in equivalent space

18 available at agencies using the Corps.

19 ‘‘(d) REPORTS.—The chief judge shall, within 90

20 days after the end of each fiscal year, make a written re21 port to the President and the Congress concerning the

22 business of the Corps during the preceding fiscal year. The

23 report shall include information and recommendations of

24 the Council concerning the future personnel requirements

25 of the Corps.
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1 ‘‘(e) SERVICE AFTER TERM EXPIRES.—After serving

2 as chief judge, an individual may continue to serve as an

3 administrative law judge unless such individual has been

4 removed from office in accordance with section 599e.

5 ‘‘§ 599a. Divisions of the Corps; division chief judges

6 ‘‘(a) ASSIGNMENT TO DIVISIONS.—Each judge of the

7 Corps shall be assigned to a division by the Council, pur8 suant to section 599b. The assignment of a judge who was

9 an administrative law judge on the date of commencement

10 of the operation of the Corps shall be made after consider11 ation of the areas of specialization in which the judge has

12 served. Each division shall be headed by a division chief

13 judge who shall exercise administrative supervision over

14 such division.

15 ‘‘(b) DIVISIONS.—The divisions of the Corps shall be

16 as follows:

17 ‘‘(1) Division of Communications, Public Util18 ity, and Transportation Regulation.

19 ‘‘(2) Division of Safety and Environmental Reg20 ulation.

21 ‘‘(3) Division of Labor.

22 ‘‘(4) Division of Labor Relations.

23 ‘‘(5) Division of Health and Human Services

24 Programs.
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1 ‘‘(6) Division of Securities, Commodities, and

2 Trade Regulation.

3 ‘‘(7) Division of General Programs.

4 ‘‘(8) Division of Financial Services Institutions.

5 ‘‘(c) APPOINTMENT OF DIVISION CHIEF JUDGES.—

6 (1) The division chief judge of each division set forth in

7 subsection (b) shall be appointed by the President, by and

8 with the advice and consent of the Senate, and shall be

9 learned in the law.

10 ‘‘(2) Division chief judges shall be appointed for 5-

11 year terms, except that of those division chief judges first

12 appointed, the President shall designate 2 such individuals

13 to be appointed for 5-year terms, 3 for 4-year terms, and

14 2 for 3-year terms.

15 ‘‘(3) Any division chief judge appointed to fill an

16 unexpired term shall be appointed only for the remainder

17 of such predecessor’s term, but may be reappointed as pro18 vided in paragraph (4).

19 ‘‘(4) Any division chief judge may be reappointed

20 upon the expiration of his or her term.

21 ‘‘(5) Any judge, after serving as division chief judge,

22 may continue to serve as an administrative law judge un23 less such individual has been removed from office in ac24 cordance with section 599e.
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1 ‘‘§ 599b. Council of the Corps

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The policymaking body of the

3 Corps shall be the Council of the Corps. The chief judge

4 and the division chief judges shall constitute the Council.

5 The chief judge shall preside over the Council. If the chief

6 judge is unable to be present at a meeting of the Council,

7 the division chief judge who is senior in length of service

8 as a member of such Council shall preside at the meeting.

9 ‘‘(b) QUORUM; VOTING.—One half of all of the mem10 bers of the Council shall constitute a quorum for the pur11 pose of transacting business. The affirmative vote by a

12 majority of all the members of the Council shall be re13 quired to approve a matter on behalf of the Council. Each

14 member of the Council shall have one vote.

15 ‘‘(c) MEETINGS.—Meetings of the Council shall be

16 held at least once a month at the call of the chief judge

17 or by the call of one-third or more of the members of the

18 Council.

19 ‘‘(d) POWERS.—The Council is authorized—

20 ‘‘(1) to assign judges to divisions and transfer

21 or reassign judges from one division to another, sub22 ject to the provisions of section 599c;

23 ‘‘(2) to appoint persons as administrative law

24 judges under section 599c;
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1 ‘‘(3) to file charges seeking adverse action

2 against an administrative law judge under section

3 599e;

4 ‘‘(4) to prescribe, after providing an oppor5 tunity for notice and comment, the rules of practice

6 and procedure for the conduct of proceedings before

7 the Corps, except that, with respect to a category of

8 proceedings adjudicated by an agency before the ef9 fective date of the Reorganization of the Federal Ad10 ministrative Judiciary Act, the Council may not

11 amend or revise the rules of practice and procedure

12 prescribed by that agency during the 2 years follow13 ing such effective date without the approval of that

14 agency, and any amendments or revisions made to

15 such rules shall not affect or be applied to any pend16 ing action;

17 ‘‘(5) to issue such rules and regulations as may

18 be appropriate for the efficient conduct of the busi19 ness of the Corps and the implementation of this

20 subchapter, including the assignment of cases to ad21 ministrative law judges;

22 ‘‘(6) subject to the civil service and classifica23 tion laws and regulations—

24 ‘‘(A) to select, appoint, employ, and fix the

25 compensation of the employees (other than ad-
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1 ministrative law judges) that the Council deems

2 necessary to carry out the functions, powers,

3 and duties of the Corps; and

4 ‘‘(B) to prescribe the authority and duties

5 of such employees;

6 ‘‘(7) to establish, abolish, alter, consolidate, and

7 maintain such regional, district, and other field of8 fices as are necessary to carry out the functions,

9 powers, and duties of the Corps and to assign and

10 reassign employees to such field offices;

11 ‘‘(8) to procure temporary and intermittent

12 services under section 3109;

13 ‘‘(9) to enter into, to the extent or in such

14 amounts as are authorized in appropriation Acts,

15 without regard to section 3709 of the Revised Stat16 utes of the United States (41 U.S.C. 5), contracts,

17 leases, cooperative agreements, or other transactions

18 that may be necessary to conduct the business of the

19 Corps;

20 ‘‘(10) to delegate any of the chief judge’s func21 tions or powers with the consent of the chief judge,

22 or whenever the office of such chief judge is vacant,

23 to one or more division chief judges or other employ24 ees of the Corps, and to authorize the redelegation

25 of any of those functions or powers;
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1 ‘‘(11) to establish, after consulting with an

2 agency, initial and continuing educational programs

3 to assure that each administrative law judge as4 signed to hear cases of that agency has the nec5 essary training in the specialized field of law of that

6 agency;

7 ‘‘(12) to make suitable arrangements for con8 tinuing education and training of other employees of

9 the Corps, so that the level of expertise in the divi10 sions of the Corps will be maintained and enhanced;

11 and

12 ‘‘(13) to determine all other matters of general

13 policy of the Corps.

14 ‘‘(e) OFFICIAL SEAL.—The Council shall select an of15 ficial seal for the Corps which shall be judicially noticed.

16 ‘‘§ 599c. Appointment and transfer of administrative

17 law judges

18 ‘‘(a) APPOINTMENT.—After the initial establishment

19 of the Corps, the Council shall appoint new or additional

20 judges as may be necessary for the efficient and expedi21 tious conduct of the business of the Corps. Appointments

22 shall be made from a register maintained by the Office

23 of Personnel Management under subchapter I of chapter

24 33 of this title. Upon request by the chief judge, the Office

25 of Personnel Management shall certify enough names from
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1 the top of such register to enable the Council to consider

2 five names for each vacancy. Notwithstanding section

3 3318, a vacancy in the Corps may be filled from the high4 est five eligible individuals available for appointment on

5 the certificate furnished by the Office of Personnel

6 Management.

7 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION ON JUDGE’S DUTIES.—A judge of

8 the Corps may not perform or be assigned to perform du9 ties inconsistent with the duties and responsibilities of an

10 administrative law judge.

11 ‘‘(c) REASSIGNMENTS; DETAILS.—A judge or staff

12 member of the Corps on the date of commencement of the

13 operation of the Corps, and all new judges and staff mem14 bers appointed by the Council, may not thereafter be invol15 untarily reassigned to a new permanent duty station if

16 such station is beyond the commuting area of the duty

17 station which is the judge’s or staff member’s permanent

18 duty station on that date. A judge or staff member of the

19 Corps may be temporarily detailed, once in a 24-month

20 period, to a new duty station at any location, for a period

21 of not more than 120 days.

22 ‘‘§ 599d. Jurisdiction

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Any case, claim, action, or pro24 ceeding authorized to be heard before an administrative

25 law judge on the day before the effective date of the Reor-
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1 ganization of the Federal Administrative Judiciary Act

2 shall, on or after such date, be referred to the Corps for

3 adjudication on the record after an opportunity for a

4 hearing.

5 ‘‘(b) TYPES OF CASES.—An administrative law judge

6 who is a member of the Corps shall hear and render a

7 decision upon—

8 ‘‘(1) every case of adjudication subject to the

9 provisions of section 553, 554, or 556;

10 ‘‘(2) every case in which hearings are required

11 by law to be held in accordance with sections 553,

12 554, or section 556;

13 ‘‘(3) every other case referred to the Corps by

14 an agency in which a determination is to be made

15 on the record after an opportunity for a hearing;

16 and

17 ‘‘(4) every case referred to the Corps by a court

18 for an administrative law judge to act as a special

19 master or to otherwise making findings of fact on

20 behalf of the referring court, which shall continue to

21 have exclusive and undiminished jurisdiction over

22 the case.

23 ‘‘(c) REFERRAL OF CASES.—When a case under sub24 section (b) arises, it shall be referred to the Corps. Under

25 regulations issued by the Council, the case shall be as-
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1 signed to a division. The appropriate division chief shall

2 assign cases to judges, taking into consideration speciali3 zation, training, workload, and conflicts of interest.

4 ‘‘(d) REFERRALS BY AGENCIES AND COURTS.—

5 Courts are authorized to refer, subject to the approval of

6 the majority of the Council and the parties in the court

7 proceeding, those cases, or portions thereof, in which they

8 seek an administrative law judge to act as a special master

9 pursuant to the provisions of Rule 53(a) of the Federal

10 Rules of Civil Procedure which shall continue to have ex11 clusive and undiminished jurisdiction over the case. When

12 a court has referred a case to an administrative law judge,

13 the recommendations, rulings, and findings of fact of the

14 administrative law judge are subject to de novo review by

15 the referring court.

16 ‘‘(e) SATISFACTION OF OTHER PROCEDURAL RE17 QUIREMENTS.—Compliance with this subchapter shall sat18 isfy all requirements imposed under section 916 of the Fi19 nancial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement

20 Act of 1989.

21 ‘‘(f) APPLICATION OF AGENCY POLICY.—The provi22 sions of this subchapter shall effect no change in—

23 ‘‘(1) an agency’s rulemaking, interpretative, or

24 policymaking authority in carrying out the statutory

25 responsibilities vested in the agency or agency head;
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1 ‘‘(2) the adjudicatory authority of administra2 tive law judges; or

3 ‘‘(3) the authority of an agency to review deci4 sions of administrative law judges under any appli5 cable provision of law.

6 ‘‘§ 599e. Removal and discipline

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) Except as provided under

8 paragraph (2), an administrative law judge may not be

9 removed, suspended, reprimanded, or disciplined except

10 for misconduct or neglect of duty, but may be removed

11 for physical or mental disability (consistent with prohibi12 tions on discrimination otherwise imposed by law).

13 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to an action initi14 ated under section 1215.

15 ‘‘(b) RULES OF JUDICIAL CONDUCT.—No later than

16 180 days after the appointment and confirmation of the

17 Council, the Council shall adopt and issue rules of judicial

18 conduct for administrative law judges. Such code shall be

19 enforced by the Council and shall include standards gov20 erning—

21 ‘‘(1) judicial conduct and extra-judicial activi22 ties to avoid actual, or the appearance of, impropri23 eties or conflicts of interest;

24 ‘‘(2) the performance of judicial duties impar25 tially and diligently;
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1 ‘‘(3) avoidance of bias or prejudice with respect

2 to all parties; and

3 ‘‘(4) efficiency and management of cases so as

4 to reduce dilatory practices and unnecessary costs.

5 ‘‘(c) DISCIPLINARY ACTION BY THE COUNCIL.—An

6 administrative law judge may be subject to disciplinary ac7 tion by the Council under subsection (j). An administra8 tive law judge may be removed only after the Council has

9 filed with the Merit Systems Protection Board a notice

10 of removal and the Merit Systems Protection Board has

11 determined on the record, after an opportunity for a hear12 ing before the Merit Systems Protection Board, that there

13 is good cause to take the action of removal.

14 ‘‘(d) COMPLAINTS RESOLUTION BOARD.—Under reg15 ulations issued by the Council, a Complaints Resolution

16 Board shall be established within the Corps to consider

17 and to recommend appropriate action to be taken when

18 a complaint is made concerning conduct of a judge of the

19 Corps. Such complaint may be made by any interested

20 person, including parties, practitioners, the chief judge,

21 administrative law judges, and agencies.

22 ‘‘(e) COMPOSITION OF THE BOARD.—(1) The Board

23 shall consist of—

24 ‘‘(A) 2 judges from each division of the Corps,

25 who shall be appointed by the Council; and
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1 ‘‘(B) 16 attorneys who shall be appointed in ac2 cordance with the provisions of paragraph (2).

3 ‘‘(2) The Council shall request a list of candidates

4 to be members of the Board from the American Bar Asso5 ciation. Such list may not include any individual who is

6 an administrative law judge or former administrative law

7 judge.

8 ‘‘(3) The chief judge and the division chief judges

9 may not serve on the Board.

10 ‘‘(4) No individual may serve 2 successive terms on

11 the Board.

12 ‘‘(5)(A) Except as provided under subparagraph (B),

13 all terms on the Board shall be 2 years.

14 ‘‘(B) In making the original appointments to the

15 Board, the Council shall designate one-half of the appoint16 ments made under paragraph (1)(A) and one-half of the

17 appointments made under paragraph (1)(B), as a term of

18 1 year.

19 ‘‘(6)(A) Each member of the Board who is not an

20 officer or employee of the Federal Government shall be

21 compensated at a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the

22 annual rate of basic pay prescribed for a position at the

23 level of AL–3, rate C under section 5372 of this title for

24 each day (including travel time) during which such mem25 ber is engaged in the performance of the duties of the
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1 Board. All members of the Board who are administrative

2 law judges shall serve without compensation in addition

3 to that received for their services as officers or employees

4 of the United States.

5 ‘‘(B) The members of the Board shall be allowed

6 travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence,

7 at rates authorized for employees of agencies under sub8 chapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code,

9 while away from their homes or regular places of business

10 in the performance of services for the Board.

11 ‘‘(f) FILING AND REFERRAL OF COMPLAINT.—(1) A

12 complaint concerning the official conduct of an adminis13 trative law judge shall be made in writing. The complaint

14 shall be filed with the chief judge, or it may be originated

15 by the chief judge on his own motion. The chief judge shall

16 refer the complaint to a 5-member panel designated by

17 the Council—

18 ‘‘(A) consisting of 3 administrative law judges

19 appointed under subsection (e)(1)(A), none of whom

20 may be serving in the same division as the adminis21 trative law judge who is the subject of the com22 plaint; and

23 ‘‘(B) two members appointed under subsection

24 (e)(1)(B), none of whom regularly practice before
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1 the division to which the administrative law judge,

2 who is the subject of the complaint is assigned.

3 ‘‘(2) Any individual chosen to serve on the panel who

4 has a personal or financial conflict of interest involving

5 the administrative law judge who is the subject of the com6 plaint shall be disqualified by the Council from serving on

7 the panel. The Council shall replace any disqualified indi8 vidual or vacancy with another member of the Board who

9 is eligible to serve on the panel.

10 ‘‘(g) CHIEF JUDGE ACTION.—(1) After expeditiously

11 reviewing a complaint, the chief judge, by written order

12 stating his reason, may—

13 ‘‘(A) dismiss the complaint, if the chief judge

14 finds the complaint to be—

15 ‘‘(i) directly related to the merits of a deci16 sion or procedural ruling; or

17 ‘‘(ii) frivolous;

18 ‘‘(B) conclude the proceeding if the chief judge

19 finds that appropriate corrective action has been

20 taken or that action on the complaint is no longer

21 necessary because of intervening events; or

22 ‘‘(C) refer the complaint to the Complaint Res23 olution Board in accordance with subsection (f).
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1 ‘‘(2) The chief judge shall transmit copies of the writ2 ten order to the complainant and to the administrative law

3 judge who is the subject of the complaint.

4 ‘‘(h) NOTICE OF THE COMPLAINT.—The administra5 tive law judge and the complainant shall be given notice

6 of receipt of the complaint and notice of referral of the

7 complaint to the panel.

8 ‘‘(i) INQUIRY AND REPORT BY PANEL.—(1) The

9 panel shall inquire into the complaint and have authority

10 to conduct a full investigation of the complaint, including

11 authority to hold hearings and issue subpoenas, examine

12 witnesses, and receive evidence. All proceedings of the

13 Complaint Resolution Board shall be confidential. The ad14 ministrative law judge who is the subject of the complaint

15 shall have the right to be represented by counsel and shall

16 have an opportunity to appear before the panel. The com17 plainant shall be afforded an opportunity to appear at the

18 proceedings conducted by the investigating panel, if the

19 panel concludes that the complainant could offer substan20 tial information.

21 ‘‘(2) In determining whether misconduct has oc22 curred, the panel shall apply a preponderance of evidence

23 standard of proof to its proceedings.

24 ‘‘(3)(A) Within 90 days after the referral of the com25 plaint, the panel shall report to the Council on its findings
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1 of fact and recommendations for appropriate disciplinary

2 action, if any, that should be taken against the adminis3 trative law judge.

4 ‘‘(B) If the panel has not completed its inquiry within

5 90 days after receiving the complaint, the panel shall re6 quest an extension of time from the Council to complete

7 its inquiry.

8 ‘‘(C) A copy of the report shall be provided concur9 rently to the Council, the administrative law judge who

10 is the subject of the complaint, and the complainant. The

11 Council shall retain all reports filed under this section and

12 such reports shall be confidential, except that a rec13 ommendation for disciplinary action shall be made avail14 able to the public.

15 ‘‘(4) The recommendations of the panel shall include

16 one of the following:

17 ‘‘(A) Dismissal of all or part of the complaint.

18 ‘‘(B) Direct informal reprimand.

19 ‘‘(C) Direct formal reprimand.

20 ‘‘(D) Suspension.

21 ‘‘(E) Automatic referral to the Merit Systems

22 Protection Board on recommendations of removal.

23 ‘‘(5) The recommendations of the panel are binding

24 on the Council, unless the administrative law judge ap25 peals to the Merit Systems Protection Board.
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1 ‘‘(j) DISCIPLINARY ACTION.—Except as provided in

2 subsection (a)(2), the Council shall take appropriate dis3 ciplinary action against the administrative law judge based

4 upon the report of the panel within 30 days after receiving

5 the report of the panel. Such disciplinary action shall be

6 enforced by the Council and shall be final unless the ad7 ministrative law judge files an appeal with the Merit Sys8 tems Protection Board within 30 days after receiving no9 tice of such disciplinary action.

10 ‘‘(k) RECOMMENDATION FOR RELIEF TO AGENCY,

11 DEPARTMENT, OR COMMISSION.—Based upon a finding of

12 judicial misconduct by an administrative law judge, the

13 Council shall have authority to recommend to the head

14 of an agency, department or commission that action may

15 be taken to provide relief to aggrieved individuals due to

16 the judicial misconduct by an administrative law judge.’’.

17 (b) APPOINTMENTS OF DIVISION CHIEF JUDGES.—

18 It is the sense of the Congress that the President should

19 appoint as division chief judges under section 599a(c) of

20 title 5, United States Code (as added by subsection (a)

21 of this section), individuals who have served as an admin22 istrative law judge for at least 5 years.

23 (c) ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISION.—Except as pro24 vided under subchapter VI of chapter 5 of title 5, United

25 States Code, the chief administrative law judge and the
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1 division chief judges appointed under such subchapter

2 shall be deemed administrative law judges appointed

3 under section 3105.

4 (d) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—

5 The table of sections for chapter 5 of title 5, United States

6 Code, is amended by adding at the end thereof the

7 following:

8 ‘‘SUBCHAPTER VI—ADMINISTRATIVE LAW

9 JUDGE CORPS

‘‘Sec.

‘‘597. Definitions.

‘‘598. Establishment; membership.

‘‘599. Chief administrative law judge.

‘‘599a. Divisions of the Corps; division chief judges.

‘‘599b. Council of the Corps.

‘‘599c. Appointment and transfer of administrative law judges.

‘‘599d. Jurisdiction.

‘‘599e. Removal and discipline.’’.

10 SEC. 4. AGENCY REVIEW STUDY AND REPORT.

11 (a) STUDY.—The chief administrative law judge of

12 the Administrative Law Judge Corps of the United States

13 shall conduct a study of the various types and levels of

14 agency review to which decisions of administrative law

15 judges are subject. A separate study shall be conducted

16 for each division of the Corps. The studies shall include

17 monitoring and evaluating data and shall be conducted in

18 consultation with the division chief judges, the Chairman

19 of the Administrative Conference of the United States,

20 and the agencies that review the decisions of administra21 tive law judges.
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1 (b) REPORT.—(1) Not later than 2 years after the

2 effective date of this Act, the Council shall report to the

3 President and the Congress on the findings and rec4 ommendations resulting from the studies conducted under

5 subsection (a).

6 (2) The report under paragraph (1) shall include rec7 ommendations, including recommendations for new legis8 lation, for any reforms that may be appropriate to make

9 review of administrative law judges’ decisions more effi10 cient and meaningful and to accord greater finality to such

11 decisions, except that all decisions subject, before the ef12 fective date of this Act, to review pursuant to section

13 205(g) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(g)) shall

14 continue to be subject to such review pursuant to such

15 section.

16 (3) The report under paragraph (1) shall also include

17 recommendations for using staff more efficiently to de18 crease backlogs, especially in the area of social security

19 disability cases.

20 SEC. 5. TRANSITION AND SAVINGS PROVISIONS.

21 (a) TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS.—There are trans22 ferred to the administrative law judges of the Administra23 tive Law Judge Corps established by section 598 of title

24 5, United States Code (as added by section 3 of this Act),

25 all functions authorized to be performed on the day before
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1 the effective date of this Act by the administrative law

2 judges appointed under section 3105 of such title before

3 the effective date of this Act.

4 (b) USE OF AGENCY FACILITIES AND PERSONNEL.—

5 With the consent of the agencies concerned, the Adminis6 trative Law Judge Corps of the United States may use

7 the facilities and the services of officers, employees, and

8 other personnel of agencies from which functions and du9 ties are transferred to the Corps for so long as may be

10 needed to facilitate the orderly transfer of those functions

11 and duties under this Act.

12 (c) INCIDENTAL TRANSFERS.—The personnel, assets,

13 liabilities, contracts, property, records, and unexpended

14 balances of appropriations, authorizations, allocations,

15 and other funds employed, held, used, arising from, avail16 able or to be made available, in connection with the func17 tions transferred by this Act, are, subject to section 1531

18 of title 31, United States Code, transferred to the Corps

19 for appropriate allocation.

20 (d) PAY OF TRANSFERRED PERSONNEL.—The trans21 fer of personnel pursuant to subsection (b) or (c) shall

22 be without reduction in pay or classification for 5 years

23 after such transfer.

24 (e) AUTHORITIES OF DIRECTOR OF OMB.—The Di25 rector of the Office of Management and Budget, at such
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1 time or times as the Director shall provide, may make

2 such determinations as may be necessary with regard to

3 the functions transferred by this Act, and to make such

4 additional incidental dispositions of personnel, assets, li5 abilities, grants, contracts, property, records, and unex6 pended balances of appropriations, authorizations, alloca7 tions, and other funds held, used, arising from, available

8 to, or to be made available in connection with such func9 tions, as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of

10 this Act.

11 (f) CONTINUED EFFECTIVENESS OF PRIOR AC12 TIONS.—All orders, determinations, rules, regulations,

13 permits, contracts, collective bargaining agreements, rec14 ognition of labor organizations, certificates, licenses, and

15 privileges which have been issued, made, granted, or al16 lowed to become effective in the exercise of any duties,

17 powers, or functions which are transferred under this Act

18 and are in effect at the time this Act becomes effective

19 shall continue in effect according to their terms until

20 modified, terminated, superseded, set aside, or repealed by

21 the Administrative Law Judge Corps of the United States

22 or a judge thereof in the exercise of authority vested in

23 the Corps or its members by this Act, by a court of com24 petent jurisdiction, or by operation of law.
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1 (g) PENDING PROCEEDINGS.—(1) Except as pro2 vided in subsections (d)(5) and (e) of section 599b of title

3 5, United States Code, this Act shall not affect any pro4 ceeding before any department or agency or component

5 thereof which is pending at the time this Act takes effect.

6 Such a proceeding shall be continued before the Adminis7 trative Law Judge Corps of the United States or a judge

8 thereof, or, to the extent the proceeding does not relate

9 to functions so transferred, shall be continued before the

10 agency in which it was pending on the effective date of

11 this Act.

12 (2) No suit, action, or other proceeding commenced

13 before the effective date of this Act shall abate by reason

14 of the enactment of this Act.

15 (h) REPORTS BY OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND

16 BUDGET.—The Director of the Office of Management and

17 Budget shall monitor and report to the Congress—

18 (1) 60 days after the effective date of this Act,

19 on the amount of all funds expended in fiscal year

20 1995 by each agency on the functions transferred

21 under this Act and the amendments made by this

22 Act;

23 (2) no later than October 1, 1995, on the

24 amount of unexpended balances of appropriations,

25 authorizations, allocations, and other funds trans-
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1 ferred by all agencies to the Administrative Law

2 Judge Corps under this Act and the amendments

3 made by this Act; and

4 (3) 1 year after the effective date of this Act,

5 and each of the next 2 years thereafter on—

6 (A) whether the expenditure of each agen7 cy that transfers functions and duties under

8 this Act and the amendments made by this Act

9 are reduced by the amount of savings resulting

10 from the transfer of such functions and duties;

11 and

12 (B) the Government savings resulting from

13 transfer of such functions to the Administrative

14 Law Judge Corps and recommendations to the

15 Congress on how to achieve additional savings.

16 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 There are authorized to be appropriated for each of

18 fiscal years 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2000 to carry

19 out the provisions of this Act and subchapter VI of title

20 5, United States Code (as added by section 3 of this Act)

21 such amounts as may be necessary, not to exceed in any

22 such fiscal year the total amount expended by all agencies

23 in fiscal year 1995 in performing all functions transferred

24 under this Act and the amendments made by this Act.
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1 SEC. 7. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

2 (a) TITLE 5, UNITED STATES CODE.—Title 5, Unit3 ed States Code, is amended as follows:

4 (1) Section 593(b) is amended—

5 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (4), (5),

6 and (6) as paragraphs (5), (6), and (7), respec7 tively, and

8 (B) by inserting the following after para9 graph (3):

10 ‘‘(4) the chief administrative law judge of the

11 Administrative Law Judge Corps of the United

12 States;’’.

13 (2) Section 3105 is amended to read as follows:

14 ‘‘§ 3105. Appointment of administrative law judges

15 ‘‘Administrative law judges shall be appointed by the

16 Council of the Administrative Law Judge Corps pursuant

17 to sections 596 and 599c of this title.’’.

18 (3) Section 3344, and the item relating to sec19 tion 3344 in the table of sections for chapter 33, are

20 repealed.

21 (4) Subchapter III of chapter 75, and the items

22 relating to subchapter III and section 7521 in the

23 table of sections at the beginning of chapter 75, are

24 repealed.

25 (5) Section 559 is amended—
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1 (A) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘chap2 ter 7’’ and all that follows through ‘‘7521’’ and

3 inserting ‘‘subchapter VI of this chapter, chap4 ter 7, and sections 1305, 3105, 4301(2)(E),

5 and 5372’’; and

6 (B) in the last sentence by striking ‘‘chap7 ter 7’’ and all that follows through ‘‘7521’’ and

8 inserting ‘‘subchapter VI of this chapter, chap9 ter 7, section 1305, 3105, 4301(2)(E), or

10 5372’’.

11 (6) Section 1305 is amended—

12 (A) by striking ‘‘section 3105, 3344,’’ and

13 inserting ‘‘sections 3105,’’; and

14 (B) by striking ‘‘, and for the purpose of

15 section 7521 of this title, the Merit Systems

16 Protection Board may’’.

17 (7) Section 5514(a)(2) is amended in the fourth

18 sentence by striking ‘‘, except that’’ and all that fol19 lows through ‘‘administrative law judge’’.

20 (8) Section 7105 is amended—

21 (A) in subsection (d) by striking ‘‘, admin22 istrative law judges under section 3105 of this

23 title,’’; and
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1 (B) in subsection (e)(2) by striking ‘‘under

2 subsection (d) of this section’’ and inserting

3 ‘‘under section 3105 of this title’’.

4 (9) Section 7132(a) is amended by striking

5 ‘‘appointed by the Authority under section 3105 of

6 this title’’ and inserting ‘‘appointed under section

7 3105 of this title who is conducting hearings under

8 this chapter’’.

9 (10) Section 7502 is amended by striking

10 ‘‘7521 or’’.

11 (11) Section 7512(E) is amended by striking

12 ‘‘or 7521’’.

13 (b) OTHER PROVISIONS OF LAW.—

14 (1) Section 6(c) of the Commodity Exchange

15 Act is amended—

16 (A) in the second sentence (7 U.S.C. 9)—

17 (i) by striking ‘‘Administrative Law

18 Judge designated by the Commission’’ and

19 inserting ‘‘administrative law judge of the

20 Administrative Law Judge Corps’’; and

21 (ii) by striking ‘‘Administrative Law

22 Judge’’ and inserting ‘‘administrative law

23 judge’’; and

24 (B) by striking ‘‘Administrative Law

25 Judge’’ each subsequent place it appears (7
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1 U.S.C. 15) and inserting ‘‘administrative law

2 judge of the Administrative Law Judge Corps’’.

3 (2) Section 12(b) of the Commodity Exchange

4 Act (7 U.S.C. 16(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘Ad5 ministrative Law Judges,’’.

6 (3) Section 274B(e)(2) of the Immigration and

7 Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1324b(e)(2)) is amended

8 by striking ‘‘are specially designated by the Attorney

9 General as having’’ and inserting ‘‘have’’.

10 (4) Section 1416(a) of the Interstate Land

11 Sales Full Disclosure Act (15 U.S.C. 1715(a)) is

12 amended—

13 (A) in the first sentence by inserting ‘‘,

14 subject to section 599d of title 5, United States

15 Code,’’ after ‘‘who may’’;

16 (B) by striking the second sentence; and

17 (C) in the third sentence by striking ‘‘his

18 administrative law judges to other administra19 tive law judges or’’ and inserting ‘‘administra20 tive law judges carrying out functions under

21 this title’’.

22 (5) Section 488A(b) of the Higher Education

23 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1095a(b)) is amended in the

24 third sentence by striking ‘‘, except that’’ and all

25 that follows through ‘‘administrative law judge’’.
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1 (6) Section 509(1) of title 28, United States

2 Code, is amended—

3 (A) by striking ‘‘subchapter II’’ and insert4 ing ‘‘subchapters II and VI’’; and

5 (B) by striking ‘‘employed by the Depart6 ment of Justice’’.

7 (7) Section 12 of the Occupational Safety and

8 Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 661) is amended—

9 (A) in subsection (e)—

10 (i) by striking ‘‘administrative law

11 judges and other’’; and

12 (ii) by striking ‘‘: Provided’’ and all

13 that follows through the end of the sub14 section and inserting a period;

15 (B) in subsection (j) in the first sentence

16 by striking ‘‘A’’ and all that follows through

17 ‘‘Commission,’’ and inserting ‘‘An administra18 tive law judge to whom is assigned any proceed19 ing instituted before the Commission shall hear

20 and make a determination upon the proceeding

21 and any motion in connection with such pro22 ceeding,’’; and

23 (C) by striking subsection (k).

24 (8) Section 502(e)(1) of the Rehabilitation Act

25 of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 792(e)(1)) is amended by strik-
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1 ing the second and third sentences and inserting the

2 following: ‘‘Proceedings required to be conducted

3 under this section shall be presided over by adminis4 trative law judges appointed under subchapter VI of

5 chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code.’’.

6 (9) Section 166 of the Job Training Partner7 ship Act (29 U.S.C. 1576(a)) is amended in the first

8 sentence by striking ‘‘of the Department of Labor’’.

9 (10) Section 5(e) of the Federal Mine Safety

10 and Health Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 804(e)) is

11 amended to read as follows:

12 ‘‘(e) Proceedings required to be conducted in accord13 ance with the provisions of this Act shall be presided over

14 by administrative law judges appointed under subchapter

15 VI of chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code.’’.

16 (11) Section 113 of the Federal Mine Safety

17 and Health Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 823) is

18 amended—

19 (A) in subsection (b)(2) by striking all that

20 follows the second sentence;

21 (B) in subsection (d)(1) in the first sen22 tence by striking ‘‘appointed by the Commis23 sion’’ and all that follows through ‘‘by the Com24 mission,’’ and inserting ‘‘to whom is assigned

25 any proceeding instituted before the Commis-
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1 sion shall hear and make a determination upon

2 the proceeding and any motion in connection

3 with the proceeding,’’; and

4 (C) in subsection (e) in the first sentence

5 by striking ‘‘its’’ each place it appears.

6 (12) Section 428(b) of the Black Lung Benefits

7 Act (30 U.S.C. 938(b)) is amended by striking the

8 seventh sentence.

9 (13) Section 321(c)(1) of title 31, United

10 States Code, is amended—

11 (A) by striking ‘‘subchapter II’’ and insert12 ing ‘‘subchapters II and VI’’; and

13 (B) by striking ‘‘employed by the Sec14 retary’’.

15 (14) Section 3801(a)(7)(A) of title 31, United

16 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘appointed in

17 the authority’’ and all that follows through ‘‘such

18 title;’’ and inserting ‘‘of the Administrative Law

19 Judge Corps;’’.

20 (15) Section 19(d) of the Longshore and Har21 bor Workers’ Compensation Act (33 U.S.C. 919(d))

22 is amended by amending the second sentence to read

23 as follows: ‘‘Any such hearing shall be conducted by

24 an administrative law judge qualified under sub25 chapter VI of chapter 5 of that title.’’.
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1 (16) Section 21(b)(5) of the Longshore and

2 Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (33 U.S.C.

3 921(b)(5)) is amended by striking the first sentence.

4 (17) Section 7101(b)(2)(B) of title 38, United

5 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘7521’’ and in6 serting ‘‘599e’’.

7 (18) Section 8(b)(1) of the Contract Disputes

8 Act of 1978 (41 U.S.C. 607(b)(1)) is amended in

9 the first sentence by striking ‘‘hearing examiners ap10 pointed pursuant to section 3105 of title 5, United

11 States Code’’ and inserting ‘‘administrative law

12 judges appointed under section 3105 of title 5, Unit13 ed States Code (as in effect on the day before the

14 effective date of the Reorganization of the Federal

15 Administrative Judiciary Act)’’.

16 (19) Section 705(a) of the Civil Rights Act of

17 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–4(a)) is amended—

18 (A) by striking ‘‘administrative law

19 judges,’’; and

20 (B) by striking ‘‘: Provided’’ and all that

21 follows through the end of the subsection and

22 inserting a period.

23 (20) Section 808(c) of the Act of April 11,

24 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3608(c)), is amended—
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1 (A) in the first sentence by inserting ‘‘,

2 subject to section 599d of title 5, United States

3 Code,’’ after ‘‘The Secretary may’’;

4 (B) by striking the second sentence; and

5 (C) in the last sentence by striking ‘‘his

6 hearing examiners to other hearing examiners

7 or’’ and inserting ‘‘administrative law judges

8 carrying out functions under this title’’.

9 (21) Section 806 of the Omnibus Crime Control

10 and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3787) is

11 amended—

12 (A) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘ap13 point such hearing examiners’’ and all that fol14 lows through ‘‘United States Code,’’ and insert15 ing ‘‘, subject to section 599d of title 5, United

16 States Code, request the use of such adminis17 trative law judges’’; and

18 (B) in the second sentence by striking

19 ‘‘hearing examiner or administrative law judge

20 assigned to or employed thereby’’ and inserting

21 ‘‘such administrative law judge’’.

22 (22) Section 401(c) of the Department of En23 ergy Organization Act (42 U.S.C. 7171(c)) is

24 amended by striking ‘‘appointment and employment

25 of hearing examiners in accordance with the provi-
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1 sions of title 5,’’ and inserting ‘‘referral of cases to

2 the Administrative Law Judge Corps in accordance

3 with subchapter VI of chapter 5 of title 5,’’.

4 (23) Section 303(c)(3) of the Independent Safe5 ty Board Act of 1974 (49 U.S.C. App. 1902(c)(3))

6 is amended by striking ‘‘, attorneys, and administra7 tive law judges’’ and inserting ‘‘and attorneys’’.

8 (24) Section 304(b)(1) of the Independent

9 Safety Board Act of 1974 (49 U.S.C. App.

10 1903(b)(1)) is amended in the first sentence by

11 striking ‘‘employed by or’’.

12 (c) REFERENCES IN OTHER LAWS.—Reference in

13 any other Federal law to an administrative law judge or

14 hearing examiner or to an administrative law judge, hear15 ing examiner, or employee appointed under section 3105

16 of title 5, United States Code, shall be deemed to refer

17 to an administrative law judge of the Administrative Law

18 Judge Corps established by section 598 of title 5, United

19 States Code.

20 SEC. 8. OPERATION OF THE CORPS.

21 Operation of the Corps shall commence on the date

22 the first chief administrative law judge of the Corps takes

23 office.
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1 SEC. 9. CONTRACT DISPUTES ACT.

2 Nothing in this Act or the amendments made by this

3 Act shall be deemed to affect any agency board established

4 pursuant to the Contract Disputes Act (41 U.S.C. 601

5 and following), or any other person designated to resolve

6 claims or disputes pursuant to such Act.

7 SEC. 10. PAYMENT BY CERTAIN AGENCIES FOR ADMINIS8 TRATIVE LAW JUDGE SALARIES AND EX9 PENSES.

10 Any agency which before the effective date of this Act

11 paid the salaries and expenses of administrative law

12 judges from fees charged by such agency shall on and

13 after the effective date of this Act pay from such fees to

14 the chief judge of the Administrative Law Judge Corps,

15 or the designee of the chief judge, an amount necessary

16 to reimburse the salaries and expenses of the Corps for

17 services provided by the Corps to such agency.

18 SEC. 11. EFFECTIVE DATE.

19 Except as otherwise provided, this Act and the

20 amendments made by this Act shall take effect 120 days

21 after the date of the enactment of this Act.

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