II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4177 

To establish judicial ethics. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 10, 2022 

Ms. WARREN (for herself, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. 

MERKLEY, Mr. PADILLA, and Ms. SMITH) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To establish judicial ethics. 

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 ‘‘Judicial Ethics and 

5 Anti-Corruption Act of 2022’’. 

6 SEC. 2. CONFLICTS OF INTEREST RULES FOR JUDGES AND 

7 JUSTICES AND NONCONFLICTED FEDERAL 

8 EMPLOYEE INVESTMENT ACCOUNTS. 

9 (a) REQUIRED DIVESTMENTS OF CONFLICTED AS10 SETS.— 


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1 (1) STOCKS AND SECURITIES.—No judge or 

2 justice may own an interest in or trade (except a di3 vestment required or approved by the Judicial Con4 ference of the United States) any stock, bond, com5 modity, future, and other form of security, including 

6 an interest in a hedge fund, a derivative, option, or 

7 other complex investment vehicle, except noncon8 flicted assets allowed under subsection (b). 

9 (2) COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE.—No judge or 

10 justice may maintain ownership in commercial real 

11 estate, unless ownership of such commercial real es12 tate is necessary for an entity described in para13 graph (4)(C). 

14 (3) TRUSTS.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—No judge or justice 

16 may maintain a financial interest in any trust, 

17 including a family trust, if the Judicial Con18 ference of the United States determines that 

19 the trust includes any— 

20 (i) asset that might present a conflict 

21 of interest; or 

22 (ii) stock, bond, commodity, future, 

23 and other form of security, including an in24 terest in a hedge fund, a derivative, option, 

25 or other complex investment vehicle, except 


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1 nonconflicted assets allowed under sub2 section (b). 

3 (B) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraph (A) shall 

4 not apply to a trust described in section 

5 102(f)(2) of the Ethics in Government Act of 

6 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.). 

7 (4) BUSINESSES AND COMPANIES.— 

8 (A) PRIVATELY OWNED OR CLOSELY HELD

9 CORPORATION.—No judge or justice may main10 tain ownership in a privately owned or closely 

11 held corporation, company, firm, partnership, or 

12 other business enterprise. 

13 (B) BOARD MEMBERS.—No judge or jus14 tice may serve on the board of directors of any 

15 for-profit entity, including any corporation, 

16 company, firm, partnership, or other business 

17 enterprise. 

18 (C) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraphs (A) and 

19 (B) shall not apply to a corporation, company, 

20 firm, partnership, or other business enterprise 

21 that has gross receipts for the previous taxable 

22 year of less than $5,000,000. 

23 (b) NONCONFLICTED ASSETS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—A judge or justice may 

2 maintain assets that do not present a conflict of in3 terest, including— 

4 (A) a widely held investment fund— 

5 (i) described in section 102(f)(8) of 

6 the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

7 U.S.C. App.); 

8 (ii) that meets the requirements de9 scribed in paragraph (2); and 

10 (iii) that is diversified because the 

11 fund does not have a stated policy of con12 centrating the investments of the fund in 

13 any industry, business, single country 

14 other than the United States, or bonds of 

15 any single State; 

16 (B) noncommercial real estate, including 

17 real estate used solely as a personal residence; 

18 (C) cash, certificates of deposit, or other 

19 forms of savings accounts; 

20 (D) a federally managed asset, including— 

21 (i) financial interests in or income de22 rived from— 

23 (I) any retirement system under 

24 title 5, United States Code (including 

25 the Thrift Savings Plan under subVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:47 May 11, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4177.IS S4177

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1 chapter III of chapter 84 of such 

2 title); or 

3 (II) any other retirement system 

4 maintained by the United States for 

5 officers or employees of the United 

6 States, including the President, or for 

7 members of the uniformed services; 

8 (ii) benefits received under the Social 

9 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 301 et seq.); and 

10 (iii) an asset in the Federal Employee 

11 Investment Account described in para12 graph (3); 

13 (E) bonds, bills, and notes issued by gov14 ernmental sources, such as the Federal Govern15 ment, State, or other municipality; 

16 (F) shares of Settlement Common Stock 

17 issued under section 7(g)(1)(A) of the Alaska 

18 Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 

19 1606(g)(1)(A)); and 

20 (G) shares of Settlement Common Stock, 

21 as defined in section 3 of the Alaska Native 

22 Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602). 

23 (2) WIDELY HELD INVESTMENT FUND RE24 QUIREMENTS.—A judge or justice may not maintain 

25 a widely held investment fund described in section 


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1 102(f)(8) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

2 (5 U.S.C. App.), unless— 

3 (A) the widely held investment fund is di4 versified, as described in paragraph (1)(A)(iii); 

5 (B) the widely held investment fund does 

6 not present a conflict of interest; and 

7 (C) any instructions to a manager of the 

8 widely held investment fund are shared with the 

9 Judicial Conference of the United States. 

10 (3) FEDERAL EMPLOYEE INVESTMENT AC11 COUNT.—Section 8472 of title 5, United States 

12 Code, is amended— 

13 (A) in subsection (f)— 

14 (i) in paragraph (2), by striking 

15 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

16 (ii) in paragraph (3), by striking the 

17 period at the end and inserting a semi18 colon; and 

19 (iii) by adding at the end the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(4) not later than 3 years after the date of en22 actment of this paragraph, establish Federal Em23 ployee Investment Accounts in the Treasury of the 

24 United States accounts for judges and justices to 


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1 maintain investments in the stock and securities 

2 markets in which a judge or justice may— 

3 ‘‘(A) sell an asset or security, including 

4 those assets or securities that present a conflict 

5 of interest under section 2(a) of the Judicial 

6 Ethics and Anti-Corruption Act of 2022, and 

7 invest the resulting funds into the Federal Em8 ployee Investment Accounts; and 

9 ‘‘(B) withdraw funds from their Federal 

10 Employee Investment Account at any time; 

11 ‘‘(5) act in the interest of the plan participants 

12 and beneficiaries of Federal Employee Investment 

13 Accounts when making decisions for the purpose of 

14 providing benefits to those participants and bene15 ficiaries; 

16 ‘‘(6) establish a new and parallel system for 

17 recordkeeping with respect to Federal Employee In18 vestment Accounts; and 

19 ‘‘(7) establish a Federal Employee Investment 

20 Fund to fully cover administrative costs associated 

21 with managing Federal Employee Investment Ac22 counts, which— 

23 ‘‘(A) shall be separate from the Thrift Sav24 ings Fund established under section 8437, exVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:47 May 11, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4177.IS S4177

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1 cept with respect to administrative costs for 

2 common resources; and 

3 ‘‘(B) may be used for compensation to pay 

4 new employees, additional resources for infor5 mation technology, additional call center capac6 ity, and any other new capacity to handle the 

7 administration of Federal Employee Investment 

8 Accounts.’’; 

9 (B) in subsection (g)(1)— 

10 (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

11 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

12 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

13 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

14 (iii) by adding at the end the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(E) promulgate regulations for the ad17 ministration of Federal Employee Investment 

18 Accounts.’’; and 

19 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(k) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

21 is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec22 essary to establish and maintain Federal Employee Invest23 ment Accounts established under subsection (f), including 

24 for the purpose of reducing any fees paid by participants 

25 in the Federal Employee Investment Accounts.’’. 


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1 (c) CIVIL FINES.—The Attorney General or the Spe2 cial Counsel may bring a civil action in the appropriate 

3 United States district court against any judge or justice 

4 who engages in conduct constituting a violation of this sec5 tion and, upon proof of such conduct by a preponderance 

6 of the evidence, such judge or justice shall be subject to 

7 a civil penalty of not more than $50,000 for each violation. 

8 The imposition of a civil penalty under this subsection 

9 does not preclude any other criminal or civil statutory, 

10 common law, or administrative remedy, which is available 

11 by law to the United States or any other person. 

12 SEC. 3. CLARIFICATION OF GIFT BAN. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7353 of title 5, United 

14 States Code, is amended— 

15 (1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 

16 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘anything of value’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘a gift’’; and 

18 (2) in subsection (d)— 

19 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

20 the end; 

21 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the pe22 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

23 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(3) the term ‘gift’ means anything of value, in25 cluding transportation, travel, lodgings and meals, 


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1 whether provided in-kind, by purchase of a ticket, 

2 payment in advance, or reimbursement after the ex3 pense has been incurred.’’. 

4 (b) REGULATIONS.—The Judicial Conference of the 

5 United States shall promulgate regulations to carry out 

6 the amendment made by subsection (a) with respect to 

7 the judicial branch. 

8 SEC. 4. RESTRICT PRIVATELY FUNDED EDUCATIONAL 

9 EVENTS AND SPEECHES. 

10 (a) JUDICIAL EDUCATION FUND.— 

11 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Chapter 42 of title 28, 

12 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

13 end the following: 

14 ‘‘§ 630. Judicial Education Fund 

15 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

16 ‘‘(1) the term ‘Board’ means the Board of the 

17 Federal Judicial Center established in section 621; 

18 ‘‘(2) the term ‘Fund’ means the Judicial Edu19 cation Fund established under subsection (b); 

20 ‘‘(3) the term ‘institution of higher education’ 

21 has the meaning given that term under section 

22 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

23 U.S.C. 1001(a)); 


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1 ‘‘(4) the term ‘national bar association’ means 

2 a national organization that is open to general mem3 bership to all members of the bar; 

4 ‘‘(5) the term ‘private judicial seminar’— 

5 ‘‘(A) means a seminar, symposia, panel 

6 discussion, course, or a similar event that pro7 vides continuing legal education to judges and 

8 justices; and 

9 ‘‘(B) does not include— 

10 ‘‘(i) seminars that last 1 day or less 

11 and are conducted by, and on the campus 

12 of, an institute of higher education; 

13 ‘‘(ii) seminars that last 1 day or less 

14 and are conducted by a national bar asso15 ciation or State or local bar association for 

16 the benefit of the bar association member17 ship; or 

18 ‘‘(iii) seminars of any length con19 ducted by, and on the campus of an insti20 tute of higher education or by a national 

21 bar association or State or local bar asso22 ciation, where a judge or justice is a pre23 senter and at which judges and justices 

24 constitute less than 25 percent of the par25 ticipants; and 


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1 ‘‘(6) the term ‘State or local bar association’ 

2 means a State or local organization that is open to 

3 general membership to all members of the bar in the 

4 specified geographic region. 

5 ‘‘(b) FUND.—There is established within the United 

6 States Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘Judicial Edu7 cation Fund’. 

8 ‘‘(c) USE OF AMOUNTS.—Amounts in the Fund may 

9 be made available for the payment of necessary expenses, 

10 including reasonable expenditures for transportation, food, 

11 lodging, private judicial seminar fees and materials, in12 curred by a judge or justice in attending a private judicial 

13 seminar approved by the Board. Necessary expenses shall 

14 not include expenditures for recreational activities or en15 tertainment other than that provided to all attendees as 

16 an integral part of the private judicial seminar. Any pay17 ment from the Fund shall be approved by the Board. 

18 ‘‘(d) REQUIRED INFORMATION.—The Board may ap19 prove a private judicial seminar after submission of infor20 mation by the sponsor of that private judicial seminar that 

21 includes— 

22 ‘‘(1) the content of the private judicial seminar 

23 (including a list of presenters, topics, and course 

24 materials); and 


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1 ‘‘(2) the litigation activities of the sponsor (in2 cluding any amicus briefs submitted by the sponsor) 

3 and the presenters at the private judicial seminar 

4 (including the litigation activities of the employer of 

5 each presenter) on the topic related to those ad6 dressed at the private judicial seminar. 

7 ‘‘(e) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—If the Board approves 

8 a private judicial seminar, the Board shall make the infor9 mation submitted under subsection (d) relating to the pri10 vate judicial seminar available to judges, justices, and the 

11 public by posting the information online. 

12 ‘‘(f) GUIDELINES.—The Judicial Conference shall 

13 promulgate guidelines to ensure that the Board only ap14 proves private judicial seminars that are conducted in a 

15 manner so as to maintain the public’s confidence in an 

16 unbiased and fair-minded judiciary. 

17 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

18 are authorized to be appropriated for deposit in the Fund 

19 $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022, 2023, and 2024, 

20 to remain available until expended.’’. 

21 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND22 MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 42 of title 

23 28, United States Code, is amended by adding at 

24 the end the following: 

‘‘630. Judicial Education Fund.’’. 


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1 (b) PRIVATE JUDICIAL SEMINAR GIFTS PROHIB2 ITED.— 

3 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 

4 (A) the term ‘‘gift’’ has the meaning given 

5 that term under section 7353 of title 5, United 

6 States Code, as amended by section 3; 

7 (B) the term ‘‘institution of higher edu8 cation’’ has the meaning given that term under 

9 section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 

10 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)); and 

11 (C) the terms ‘‘national bar association’’, 

12 ‘‘private judicial seminar’’, and ‘‘State or local 

13 bar association’’ have the meanings given those 

14 terms under section 630 of title 28, United 

15 States Code, as added by subsection (a). 

16 (2) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days 

17 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Judicial 

18 Conference of the United States shall promulgate 

19 regulations to apply section 7353(a) of title 5, 

20 United States Code, to prohibit the solicitation or 

21 acceptance of a gift in connection with a private ju22 dicial seminar. 

23 (3) EXCEPTION.—The prohibition under the 

24 regulations promulgated under paragraph (2) shall 

25 not apply if— 


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1 (A) the judge or justice participates in a 

2 private judicial seminar as a speaker, panel par3 ticipant, or otherwise presents information; 

4 (B) Federal judges and justices are not the 

5 primary audience at the private judicial sem6 inar; and 

7 (C) the gift accepted is— 

8 (i) reimbursement from the private ju9 dicial seminar sponsor of reasonable trans10 portation, food, or lodging expenses on any 

11 day on which the judge or justice speaks, 

12 participates, or presents information, as 

13 applicable; 

14 (ii) attendance at the private judicial 

15 seminar on any day on which the judge or 

16 justice speaks, participates, or presents in17 formation, as applicable; or 

18 (iii) anything excluded from the defi19 nition of a gift under regulations of the 

20 Judicial Conference of the United States 

21 under sections 7351 and 7353 of title 5, 

22 United States Code, as in effect on the 

23 date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 5. CODE OF CONDUCT. 

2 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con3 gress that in order for justices and judges, both of the 

4 supreme and inferior courts, to hold their offices during 

5 ‘‘good behaviour’’ under section 1 of article III of the Con6 stitution of the United States, the judges and justices 

7 shall, among other requirements, adhere to the Code of 

8 Conduct for United States Judges adopted by the Judicial 

9 Conference of the United States described in this section. 

10 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The Code of Conduct for 

11 United States Judges adopted by the Judicial Conference 

12 of the United States shall apply to the justices of the Su13 preme Court of the United States to the same extent as 

14 such Code applies to circuit and district judges. 

15 (c) ENFORCEMENT.—The Judicial Conference shall 

16 establish procedures, modeled after the procedures set 

17 forth in chapter 16 of title 28, United States Code, under 

18 which— 

19 (1) complaints alleging that a justice of the Su20 preme Court of the United States has violated the 

21 Code of Conduct referred to in subsection (a) may 

22 be filed with or identified by the Conference; 

23 (2) such material, nonfrivolous complaints and 

24 any accompanying material are immediately referred 

25 to the Supreme Court Review Committee established 

26 in section 10; and 


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1 (3) further action, where appropriate, is taken 

2 by the Conference, with respect to such complaints. 

3 (d) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS; EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

4 (1) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

5 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

6 Judicial Conference shall submit to Congress the 

7 procedures established under subsection (b). 

8 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The procedures estab9 lished under subsection (b) shall take effect 1 year 

10 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

11 SEC. 6. IMPROVING DISCLOSURE. 

12 (a) RECUSAL DECISIONS.—Section 455 of title 28, 

13 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘(g) RECUSAL LISTS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) Each justice, judge, and magistrate judge 

17 of the United States shall maintain and submit to 

18 the Judicial Conference a list of each association or 

19 interest that would require the justice, judge, or 

20 magistrate to be recused under subsection (b)(4), in21 cluding any financial interests of the judge, the 

22 spouse of the judge, or any minor child of the judge 

23 residing in the household of the judge. 

24 ‘‘(2) The Judicial Conference shall maintain 

25 and make publicly available online, at no cost, each 


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1 list required under this subsection that is filed with 

2 the Judicial Conference in a format that is search3 able, sortable, machine-readable, downloadable, and 

4 accessible format, and accessible in multiple lan5 guages and to individuals with disabilities. 

6 ‘‘(3) The Judicial Conference may issue public 

7 or private guidance to justices, judges, and mag8 istrate judges of the United States regarding the 

9 contents of the lists under this subsection to ensure 

10 such lists comply with the disqualification require11 ments of (b)(4).’’. 

12 (b) SPEECHES.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each justice, judge, and 

14 magistrate judge of the United States shall maintain 

15 and submit to the Judicial Conference of the United 

16 States a copy of each speech or other significant oral 

17 communication made by the justice, judge, or mag18 istrate. 

19 (2) AVAILABILITY.—The Judicial Conference of 

20 the United States shall maintain and make each 

21 speech or other significant oral communication sub22 mitted under paragraph (1) available to the public 

23 in printed form, upon request, and online, at no 

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1 chine-readable, downloadable, and accessible in mul2 tiple languages and to individuals with disabilities. 

3 (3) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Judicial 

5 Conference of the United States shall promulgate 

6 regulations regarding the types of oral communica7 tions that are required to be maintained, submitted, 

8 and made publicly available under this subsection. 

9 (c) LIVESTREAMING JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS.— 

10 (1) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term 

11 ‘‘appellate court of the United States’’ means any 

12 United States circuit court of appeals and the Su13 preme Court of the United States. 

14 (2) STREAMING OF COURT PROCEEDINGS.—In 

15 accordance with procedures established by the Judi16 cial Conference of the United States, the audio of 

17 each open session conducted by an appellate court of 

18 the United States shall be made available online con19 temporaneously with the session, unless the appel20 late court of the United States, by a majority vote, 

21 determines that making audio of the session avail22 able online would violate the constitutional rights or 

23 threaten the safety of any party to the proceeding. 

24 (d) PUBLICIZING CASE ASSIGNMENT INFORMA25 TION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

2 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Judicial 

3 Conference of the United States shall promulgate 

4 regulations requiring each court of the United States 

5 to make case assignment data available to the public 

6 online, at no cost, in a format that is searchable, 

7 sortable, machine-readable, downloadable, and acces8 sible in multiple languages and to individuals with 

9 disabilities. 

10 (2) CONTENTS.—The case assignment data 

11 made available under paragraph (1) shall include, at 

12 a minimum, and to the extent available, the case 

13 title, docket number, case origin, filing date, and 

14 name of each authoring judge, concurring judge, and 

15 dissenting judge for each opinion issued in the case. 

16 (e) MAKING WEBSITES USER-FRIENDLY.—Not later 

17 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

18 the Judicial Conference of the United States shall promul19 gate regulations requiring an evaluation of, and improve20 ments to, the website of each district court of the United 

21 States to ensure the website is easy to understand, includ22 ing that it is clear how to file a complaint relating to a 

23 judge or an employee of the district court. 

24 (f) ACCESSIBILITY.—The Judicial Conference shall 

25 make efforts to ensure that any disclosures required under 


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1 this section are made available to the public in plain lan2 guage, in a variety of languages, and accessible to individ3 uals with disabilities. 

4 SEC. 7. OVERSIGHT PROCESS FOR DISQUALIFICATION OF 

5 JUSTICE, JUDGE, OR MAGISTRATE JUDGE. 

6 Section 455 of title 28, United States Code, as 

7 amended by section 6 of this Act, is amended by adding 

8 at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(h)(1) Any litigant appearing before a justice, judge, 

10 or magistrate judge of the United States may file a peti11 tion that the justice, judge, or magistrate judge of the 

12 United States, as applicable, shall be disqualified based 

13 on the criteria described in subsection (b). 

14 ‘‘(2)(A) Any judge or magistrate judge of the United 

15 States subject to a petition under paragraph (1) may pro16 vide a public, written response to the petition that provides 

17 a written explanation relating to any disqualification deci18 sion. 

19 ‘‘(B) Any justice of the Supreme Court of the United 

20 States subject to a petition under paragraph (1) shall pro21 vide a public, written response to the petition that provides 

22 a written explanation relating to any disqualification deci23 sion. 

24 ‘‘(3) If a litigant makes a petition under paragraph 

25 (1) relating to a justice of the Supreme Court of the 


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1 United States, the Judicial Conference of the United 

2 States shall issue a nonbinding, public advisory opinion 

3 with its recommendation, which shall be shared with the 

4 Supreme Court Review Committee established in section 

5 10 of the Judicial Ethics and Anti-Corruption Act of 

6 2022. 

7 ‘‘(4) If the Judicial Conference of the United States 

8 recommends that a justice of the Supreme Court of the 

9 United States be disqualified under this section, the jus10 tice shall publicly explain a final disqualification decision 

11 in writing, which shall be shared with the Supreme Court 

12 Review Committee established in section 10 of the Judicial 

13 Ethics and Anti-Corruption Act of 2022. 

14 ‘‘(5)(A) For any judge or magistrate judge of the 

15 United States, the Judicial Conference of the United 

16 States shall— 

17 ‘‘(B) establish a written process to determine whether 

18 a judge meets 1 or more of the criteria in subsection (b); 

19 ‘‘(C) use any administrative procedures which may be 

20 necessary to aid in the execution of the written process 

21 described in subparagraph (B), which may include any 

22 procedures or software that may be necessary to determine 

23 whether a judge meets 1 or more of the criteria in sub24 section (b); and 


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1 ‘‘(D) the process described in subparagraph (B) shall 

2 be made publicly available and, at a minimum— 

3 ‘‘(i) include how an individual may make a peti4 tion under paragraph (1) for a judge to be disquali5 fied; 

6 ‘‘(ii) ensure that a judge or group of judges 

7 other than the judge who is the subject of the in8 quiry determines whether the judge shall be disquali9 fied; 

10 ‘‘(iii) allow the judge or group of judges making 

11 the disqualification determination to receive the ex12 pert advice of ethics personnel and officials, includ13 ing individuals with expertise in ethics at the Judi14 cial Conference; 

15 ‘‘(iv) require that the judge be disqualified 

16 should another judge or group of judges determine 

17 that the judge must be disqualified in accordance 

18 with this subsection; and 

19 ‘‘(v) require that all recusal decisions be made 

20 publicly available and be accompanied by a written 

21 explanation for the recusal decision.’’. 

22 SEC. 8. COMPLAINTS AGAINST RETIRED JUDGES AND JUDI23 CIAL DISCIPLINE. 

24 (a) COMPLAINTS.—Section 351(d) of title 28, United 

25 States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(1) the term ‘judge’— 

4 ‘‘(A) means a circuit judge, district judge, 

5 bankruptcy judge, or magistrate judge; and 

6 ‘‘(B) includes a retired judge described in 

7 subparagraph (A);’’; 

8 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at 

9 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(3) the term ‘retired judge’ means any judge 

12 of the United States who has retired from regular 

13 active service under section 371(b) or 372(a).’’. 

14 (b) REVIEW OF COMPLAINT BY CHIEF JUDGE.—Sec15 tion 352 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by 

16 adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘inter18 vening events’ does not include the retirement of the judge 

19 whose conduct is complained of or the nomination or con20 firmation of the judge to the Supreme Court of the United 

21 States.’’. 

22 SEC. 9. ACTION BY JUDICIAL COUNCIL IN RESPONSE TO 

23 MISCONDUCT BY JUDGES. 

24 Section 354 of title 28, United States Code, is 

25 amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a)(2), by adding at the end 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘(D) RETIRED JUDGES.—If the conduct of 

4 a retired judge is the subject of the complaint, 

5 action by the judicial council under paragraph 

6 (1)(C) may include— 

7 ‘‘(i) censuring or reprimanding the 

8 judge by means of public announcement; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(ii) reducing or rescinding the non11 vested pension benefits of the retired 

12 judge. 

13 ‘‘(E) REMEDIAL ACTIONS FOR CERTAIN

14 CONDUCT.— 

15 ‘‘(i) DEFINITION.—In this subpara16 graph, the term ‘covered judge’ does not 

17 include a retired judge. 

18 ‘‘(ii) CONDUCT.—If the conduct of a 

19 covered judge is the subject of the com20 plaint, action by the judicial council under 

21 paragraph (1)(C) may include mandating 

22 that the covered judge participate in pro23 fessional counseling, treatment, education, 

24 or mentoring to address the misconduct at 

25 issue.’’; and 


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1 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(c) REPORT.— 

3 ‘‘(1) SUBMISSION TO JUDICIAL CONFERENCE

4 OF THE UNITED STATES.—Each chief judge of the 

5 circuit shall submit to the Judicial Conference of the 

6 United States an annual report on, with respect to 

7 the previous year— 

8 ‘‘(A) the number of complaints filed under 

9 section 351 against judges in the circuit; and 

10 ‘‘(B) the outcome of the complaints de11 scribed in subparagraph (A). 

12 ‘‘(2) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—The Judicial 

13 Conference of the United States shall submit to the 

14 Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 

15 Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep16 resentatives each report submitted under paragraph 

17 (1). 

18 ‘‘(3) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—No later than 30 

19 days after submitting to Congress each report under 

20 paragraph (1), the Judicial Conference of the United 

21 States shall make the report available to the pub22 lic.’’. 

23 SEC. 10. SUPREME COURT COMPLAINTS REVIEW COM24 MITTEE. 

25 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) REVIEW COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Review 

2 Committee’’ means the Supreme Court Complaints 

3 Review Committee. 

4 (2) CLOSE FAMILY MEMBER.—The term ‘‘close 

5 family member’’ includes— 

6 (A) a parent of the reporting individual; 

7 (B) a spouse of the reporting individual; 

8 and 

9 (C) an adult child of the reporting indi10 vidual. 

11 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—For the purpose of assisting 

12 the House of Representatives in carrying out its respon13 sibilities under section 2 of article I and section 4 of article 

14 II of the Constitution of the United States, there is estab15 lished in the legislative branch to be known as the Su16 preme Court Complaints Review Committee under the 

17 general supervision of the Committee on the Judiciary of 

18 the House of Representatives. 

19 (c) MEMBERS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Committee shall 

21 consist of 5 members, of whom— 

22 (A) 2 shall be appointed by the Speaker of 

23 the House of Representatives; 

24 (B) 2 shall be appointed by the minority 

25 leader of the House of Representatives; and 


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•S 4177 IS

1 (C) 1 shall be appointed by agreement of 

2 the Speaker of the House of Representatives 

3 and the minority leader of the House of Rep4 resentatives. 

5 (2) QUALIFICATIONS OF REVIEW COMMITTEE

6 MEMBERS.— 

7 (A) EXPERTISE.—Each member of the Re8 view Committee shall be an individual of excep9 tional public standing who is specifically quali10 fied to serve on the Review Committee by virtue 

11 of the individual’s education, training, or expe12 rience in 1 or more of the following fields: 

13 (i) Constitutional law. 

14 (ii) Impeachment. 

15 (iii) Judicial ethics. 

16 (iv) Professional ethics. 

17 (v) Legal history. 

18 (vi) Judicial service. 

19 (B) SELECTION BASIS.—Selection and ap20 pointment of each member of the Review Com21 mittee shall be without regard to political affili22 ation and solely on the basis of fitness to per23 form the duties of a member of the Review 

24 Committee. 


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1 (C) CITIZENSHIP.—Each member of the 

2 Review Committee shall be a United States cit3 izen. 

4 (D) DISQUALIFICATIONS.—No individual 

5 shall be eligible for appointment to, or service 

6 on, the Review Committee who— 

7 (i) has ever been registered, or re8 quired to be registered, as a lobbyist under 

9 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

10 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.); 

11 (ii) engages in, or is otherwise em12 ployed in, lobbying of the Congress; 

13 (iii) is registered or is required to be 

14 registered as an agent of a foreign prin15 cipal under the Foreign Agents Registra16 tion Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.); 

17 (iv) is a currently serving judge, jus18 tice, or employee of the Federal courts; 

19 (v) is an officer or employee of the 

20 Federal Government; 

21 (vi) is a close family member of any 

22 judge or justice of the Federal courts; 

23 (vii) during the 4 years preceding the 

24 date of appointment, engaged in any sig25 nificant political activity (including being a 


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•S 4177 IS

1 candidate for public office, fundraising for 

2 a candidate for public office or a political 

3 party, or serving as an officer or employee 

4 of a political campaign or party); 

5 (viii) during the 2 years preceding the 

6 date of appointment, served as a fiduciary 

7 or personal attorney for a judge, justice, or 

8 employee of the Federal courts, including 

9 any judge or justice; or 

10 (ix) any currently serving Senator or 

11 Representative in, or Delegate or Resident 

12 Commissioner to, the Congress. 

13 (3) TERM AND REMOVAL.— 

14 (A) LENGTH OF TERM.—The term of a 

15 member of the Review Committee shall be for 

16 2 Congresses. 

17 (B) TERM LIMITS.—A member of the Re18 view Committee may not serve during 4 con19 secutive Congresses. 

20 (C) REMOVAL.—A member of the Review 

21 Committee may be removed upon unanimous 

22 agreement among the Speaker and the minority 

23 leader of the House of Representatives or by an 

affirmative vote of 2 24 ⁄3 of the members of the 


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•S 4177 IS

1 Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 

2 Representatives. 

3 (D) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy on the Re4 view Committee shall be filled for the unexpired 

5 portion of the term in the same manner, and by 

6 the same appointing authority, as the original 

7 appointment under paragraph (2). 

8 (d) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE-CHAIRPERSON.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The members of the Review 

10 Committee shall elect a chairperson and a vice-chair11 person of the Review Committee by a majority vote. 

12 The chairperson and the vice-chairperson shall serve 

13 a 1-year term, and may be reelected for additional 

14 1-year terms. 

15 (2) DUTIES.—The chairperson of the Review 

16 Committee shall preside at the meetings of the Re17 view Committee, and the vice-chairperson shall pre18 side in the absence or disability of the chairperson. 

19 (e) MEETINGS.— 

20 (1) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

21 the Review Committee shall constitute a quorum. 

22 (2) MEETINGS.—The Review Committee shall 

23 meet at the call of the chairperson, the chair of the 

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1 resentatives, or the call of a majority of its mem2 bers, pursuant to the rules of the Review Committee. 

3 (3) VOTING.—Except as otherwise specifically 

4 provided, a majority vote of the Review Committee 

5 under this subtitle shall require an affirmative vote 

6 of 3 or more members. 

7 (f) COMPENSATION.—A member of the Review Com8 mittee shall not be considered to be an officer or employee 

9 of the House or Senate, but shall be compensated at a 

10 rate equal to the daily equivalent of the minimum annual 

11 rate of basic pay prescribed for GS–15 of the General 

12 Schedule under section 5107 of title 5, United States 

13 Code, for each day (including travel time) during which 

14 such member is engaged in the performance of the duties 

15 of the Review Committee. 

16 (g) DUTIES OF REVIEW COMMITTEE.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Committee shall 

18 review each complaint made against the Chief Jus19 tice of the United States or a Justice of the Su20 preme Court of the United States through the re21 view process described in subsection (m). 

22 (2) HEARINGS.—The Review Committee may 

23 hold such hearings as are necessary and may sit and 

24 act only in executive session at such times and 

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•S 4177 IS

1 evant evidence, as may be necessary to carry out its 

2 duties. 

3 (h) FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE REPORTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the Review 

5 Committee shall file an annual financial disclosure 

6 report with the Clerk of the House of Representa7 tives on or before May 15 of each calendar year im8 mediately following any year in which the member 

9 served on the Review Committee. Each such report 

10 shall be on a form prepared by the Clerk that is sub11 stantially similar to the form required for individuals 

12 at the executive branch who must complete a con13 fidential financial disclosure report under section 

14 102 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

15 U.S.C. App.). 

16 (2) DISTRIBUTION OF REPORT.—The Clerk of 

17 the House of Representatives shall— 

18 (A) not later than 7 days after the date 

19 each financial disclosure report under para20 graph (1) is filed, send a copy of each such re21 port to the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

22 House of Representatives; and 

23 (B) annually print all such financial disclo24 sure reports as a document of Congress, and 

25 make the document available to the public. 


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•S 4177 IS

1 (i) DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE REVIEW COM2 MITTEE.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Committee is 

4 authorized— 

5 (A) to establish a process for receiving and 

6 reviewing complaints from any person regarding 

7 allegations of misconduct by a justice of the Su8 preme Court of the United States; 

9 (B) to conduct a review of material com10 plaints regarding alleged misconduct by a jus11 tice of the Supreme Court of the United States; 

12 and 

13 (C) in any case where the Review Com14 mittee determines, on the basis of the review 

15 described in subsection (m), that a justice may 

16 have engaged in conduct which might violate 

17 the Code of Conduct for United States Judges 

18 adopted by the Judicial Conference of the 

19 United States or constitute 1 or more grounds 

20 for impeachment under article II of the Con21 stitution of the United States, or which, in the 

22 interest of justice, is not amenable to resolution 

23 by the Review Committee, the Review Com24 mittee shall promptly certify such determina25 tion, together with any complaint and a record 


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•S 4177 IS

1 of any associated proceedings to the Committee 

2 on the Judiciary of the House of Representa3 tives. 

4 (2) REFERRALS TO LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFI5 CIALS.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—Upon a majority vote 

7 of the Review Committee, the Review Com8 mittee may refer potential legal violations com9 mitted by a justice to the Department of Jus10 tice or other relevant Federal or State law en11 forcement officials, which referral shall include 

12 all appropriate evidence gathered during any re13 view or preliminary investigation conducted 

14 under this subtitle. 

15 (B) NOTIFICATION.—The Review Com16 mittee shall notify the Committee on the Judici17 ary of the Senate and the Committee on the 

18 Judiciary of the House of Representatives of all 

19 referrals under this subsection. 

20 (3) LIMITATIONS ON REVIEW.—No review may 

21 be undertaken by the Review Committee of any com22 plaint— 

23 (A) that is primarily concerned with chal24 lenging the merits of a decision or procedural 

25 ruling; 


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•S 4177 IS

1 (B) that is frivolous, lacking sufficient evi2 dence to raise an inference that misconduct has 

3 occurred, or containing allegations that are in4 capable of being established through investiga5 tion; 

6 (C) concerning any alleged violation of law, 

7 rule, regulation or standard of conduct not in 

8 effect at the time of the alleged violation; or 

9 (D) concerning any alleged violation that 

10 occurred before the date of enactment of this 

11 Act. 

12 (j) PROHIBITION ON PUBLIC DISCLOSURE.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

14 (A) PROHIBITION ON PUBLIC DISCLO15 SURE.—No information obtained by a member 

16 or employee of the Review Committee regarding 

17 complaints shall be publicly disclosed to any 

18 person or entity outside the Review Committee, 

19 unless approved by a majority vote of the Re20 view Committee. Any communication to any 

21 person or entity outside the Review Committee 

22 may occur only as authorized by the Review 

23 Committee. 

24 (B) PROCEDURES AND INVESTIGATION.— 

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•S 4177 IS

1 sultation with relevant agencies, procedures 

2 necessary to prevent the unauthorized disclo3 sure of any information received by the Review 

4 Committee. Any breaches of confidentiality 

5 shall be investigated by the Review Committee 

6 and appropriate action shall be taken, which 

7 may include a recommendation to Congress for 

8 removal pursuant to subsection (c)(3)(C). 

9 (2) PROVISION WITH RESPECT TO HOUSE AND

10 SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEES.—Paragraph (1) 

11 shall not preclude— 

12 (A) any member or employee of the Review 

13 Committee from presenting a report or findings 

14 of the Committee, or testifying before the Com15 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep16 resentatives, if requested by the Committee on 

17 the Judiciary of the House of Representatives 

18 pursuant to its rules; 

19 (B) any necessary communication with the 

20 Department of Justice or any other law en21 forcement agency; or 

22 (C) any necessary communication with the 

23 Speaker or minority leader of the House of 

24 Representatives or the majority leader or mi25 nority leader of the Senate. 


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•S 4177 IS

1 (3) OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT.—Before the 

2 Review Committee votes on a recommendation or 

3 statement to be transmitted to the Committee on the 

4 Judiciary of the House of Representatives relating 

5 to a complaint involving a justice, the Review Com6 mittee shall provide the justice whose conduct is the 

7 subject of the complaint the opportunity to present, 

8 orally or in writing (at the discretion of the justice), 

9 a statement to the Review Committee. 

10 (k) PRESENTATION OF REPORTS TO THE HOUSE JU11 DICIARY COMMITTEE.—Whenever the Review Committee 

12 transmits any report to the Committee on the Judiciary 

13 of the House of Representatives relating to a complaint 

14 involving a justice, the Review Committee shall designate 

15 a member or employee of the Review Committee to present 

16 the report to the House Judiciary Committee if requested 

17 by the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep18 resentatives. 

19 (l) MAINTAINING OF FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE RE20 PORTS.—The Review Committee shall receive, and main21 tain, a copy of each report filed under section 101 of the 

22 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) by a 

23 justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. 

24 (m) COMPLAINTS.— 


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1 (1) SOURCE OF COMPLAINTS.—Any person, in2 cluding a judge, justice, or employee of the courts of 

3 the United States, may file with the Review Com4 mittee a complaint alleging a violation by a justice 

5 of any law (including any regulation), rule, or other 

6 standard of conduct, including the Code of Conduct 

7 for United States Judges adopted by the Judicial 

8 Conference of the United States, applicable to the 

9 conduct of such justice in the performance of the du10 ties, or the discharge of the responsibilities, of the 

11 justice. 

12 (2) FALSE CLAIMS AND STATEMENTS AC13 KNOWLEDGMENT.—Any complaint submission under 

14 paragraph (1) shall include a signed statement ac15 knowledging that the person submitting the allega16 tion or information understands that section 1001 of 

17 title 18, United States Code (popularly known as the 

18 ‘‘False Statements Act’’) applies to the information. 

19 (3) REVIEW PROCESS OF ALLEGED VIOLATIONS

20 BY A JUSTICE.— 

21 (A) REVIEW AUTHORIZATION.— 

22 (i) IN GENERAL.—After receiving a 

23 complaint under paragraph (1), the Review 

24 Committee may, by majority vote, author25 ize a review under subparagraph (B) of 


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•S 4177 IS

1 any alleged violation by a justice of any 

2 law (including any regulation), rule, or 

3 other standard of conduct, including the 

4 Code of Conduct for United States Judges 

5 adopted by the Judicial Conference of the 

6 United States, applicable to the conduct of 

7 such justice in the performance of the du8 ties, or the discharge of the responsibil9 ities, of the justice. 

10 (ii) REQUIREMENTS.—The authoriza11 tion under clause (i) shall— 

12 (I) be in writing; and 

13 (II) include a brief description of 

14 the specific matter and an explanation 

15 of why allegations in complaint meet 

16 the criteria in subsection (i)(3). 

17 (B) REVIEW PROCESS.— 

18 (i) INITIATION AND NOTIFICATION OF

19 REVIEW.—After the date on which the Re20 view Committee makes an authorization 

21 under subparagraph (A), the Review Com22 mittee shall— 

23 (I) initiate a review of the alleged 

24 violation; and 


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•S 4177 IS

1 (II) provide a written notification 

2 of the commencement of the review, 

3 including a statement of the nature of 

4 the review, to— 

5 (aa) the Committee on the 

6 Judiciary of the Senate and the 

7 Committee on the Judiciary of 

8 the House of Representatives; 

9 and 

10 (bb) the justice who is the 

11 subject of the review. 

12 (ii) OPPORTUNITY TO TERMINATE RE13 VIEW.—At any time, the Review Com14 mittee may, by a majority vote, terminate 

15 a review on any ground, including that the 

16 matter under review is de minimis in na17 ture. If the Review Committee votes to ter18 minate the review, the Committee shall— 

19 (I) notify, in writing, the com20 plainant, the justice who was the sub21 ject of the review, the Committee on 

22 the Judiciary of the Senate, and the 

23 Committee on the Judiciary of the 

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•S 4177 IS

1 sion to terminate the review of the 

2 matter; and 

3 (II) send a report, including any 

4 findings of the Review Committee, to 

5 the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

6 Senate and the Committee on the Ju7 diciary of the House of Representa8 tives. 

9 (C) SCOPE OF REVIEW.—During a review, 

10 the Review Committee shall evaluate the com11 plaint and determine, based on a majority vote, 

12 whether the misconduct alleged in the com13 plaint, if true, may constitute ‘‘Treason, Brib14 ery, and other high Crimes and Misdemeanors’’ 

15 under section 4 of article II of the Constitution 

16 of the United States. 

17 (D) COMPLETION OF REVIEW.—Upon the 

18 completion of any review, the Review Com19 mittee shall— 

20 (i) transmit to the Committee on the 

21 Judiciary of the House of Representatives 

22 a written report that includes— 

23 (I) a statement of the nature of 

24 the review and the justice who is the 

25 subject of the review; 


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•S 4177 IS

1 (II) the Review Committee’s de2 termination under paragraph (3); 

3 (III) a description of the number 

4 of members voting in the affirmative 

5 and in the negative for the determina6 tion under subparagraph (C); 

7 (IV) any relevant findings of the 

8 Review Committee, including— 

9 (aa) any findings of fact; 

10 (bb) a description of any rel11 evant information that the Re12 view Committee was unable to 

13 obtain or witnesses whom the Re14 view Committee was unable to 

15 interview, and the reasons there16 for; and 

17 (cc) a citation of any rel18 evant law, regulation, or stand19 ard of conduct relating to the al20 leged misconduct; 

21 (V) any supporting documenta22 tion; 

23 (VI) a written determination of 

24 whether the misconduct alleged in the 

25 complaint, if true, may constitute 


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•S 4177 IS

1 ‘‘Treason, Bribery, and other high 

2 Crimes and Misdemeanors’’ under sec3 tion 4 of article II of the Constitution 

4 of the United States; and 

5 (VII) if necessary, a brief state6 ment of dissent from the members of 

7 the Review Committee voting in the 

8 negative for the determination under 

9 subparagraph (C); and 

10 (ii) transmit to the complainant and 

11 the justice who is the subject of the review 

12 the written report of the Review Com13 mittee described in clause (i). 

14 (n) HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

15 OF REVIEW COMMITTEE REPORT.—If the Review Com16 mittee determines, after a review, that misconduct alleged 

17 in a complaint, if true, may constitute ‘‘Treason, Bribery, 

18 and other high Crimes and Misdemeanors’’ under section 

19 4 of article II of the Constitution of the United States, 

20 not later than 30 legislative days of continuous session in 

21 the House of Representatives after the Committee on the 

22 Judiciary of the House of Representatives receives a re23 port under subsection (m), the Committee on the Judici24 ary of the House of Representatives shall vote on whether 


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•S 4177 IS

1 to proceed with an investigation or an impeachment in2 quiry. 

3 (o) REQUEST FROM HOUSE JUDICIARY COM4 MITTEE.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

6 provision of this section, upon receipt of a written 

7 request from the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

8 House of Representatives that the Review Com9 mittee cease its review of any matter and refer such 

10 matter to the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

11 House of Representatives because of the ongoing in12 vestigation of the matter by the Committee on the 

13 Judiciary of the House of Representatives, the Re14 view Committee shall refer such matter to the Com15 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Representa16 tives, cease its review of that matter and so notify 

17 any justice who is the subject of the review. 

18 (2) RESUMPTION OF REVIEW.—If the Com19 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Representa20 tives notifies the Review Committee in writing that 

21 the Review Committee may continue its review of 

22 the complaint, the Review Committee may begin or 

23 continue, as the case may be, a review of the matter. 

24 (3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

25 subsection shall be construed to prevent the Review 


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•S 4177 IS

1 Committee from sending any information regarding 

2 the matter to law enforcement agencies. 

3 (p) PROCEDURES.— 

4 (1) REVIEW POWERS.—Members or employees 

5 of the Review Committee may, during a review— 

6 (A) administer to or take from any person 

7 an oath, affirmation, or affidavit; 

8 (B) obtain information or assistance from 

9 any Federal, State, or local governmental agen10 cy, or other entity, or unit thereof, including all 

11 information kept in the course of business by 

12 the Judicial Conference of the United States, 

13 the judicial councils of circuits, the Administra14 tive Office of the United States Courts, and the 

15 United States Sentencing Commission; 

16 (C) take the deposition of witnesses; and 

17 (D) submit to the chair of the Committee 

18 on the Judiciary of the House of Representa19 tives a request for the Committee on the Judici20 ary of the House of Representatives to require 

21 by subpoena the attendance of and testimony 

22 by witnesses and the production of any book, 

23 check, canceled check, correspondence, commu24 nication, document, email, paper, physical evi25 dence, record, recording, tape, or other material 


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•S 4177 IS

1 (including electronic records) relating to any 

2 matter or question the Review Committee is au3 thorized to review from any individual or entity, 

4 which— 

5 (i) shall be handled in accordance 

6 with the rules of the Committee on the Ju7 diciary of the House of Representatives; 

8 and 

9 (ii) may allow for the transmission of 

10 information or testimony between the Re11 view Committee and the Committee on the 

12 Judiciary of the House of Representatives, 

13 in accordance with rules of the Committee 

14 on the Judiciary of the House of Rep15 resentatives. 

16 (2) PROHIBITION OF EX PARTE COMMUNICA17 TIONS.—There shall be no ex parte communications 

18 between any member or employee of the Review 

19 Committee and any justice who is the subject of any 

20 review by the Review Committee or between any 

21 member of the Review Committee and any interested 

22 party. 

23 (3) OTHER REVIEW COMMITTEE RULES AND

24 PROCEDURES.—The Review Committee is authorized 

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•S 4177 IS

1 suant to its duties and powers in paragraph (1) nec2 essary to carry out the functions of the Review Com3 mittee in accordance with this section. 

4 (q) PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

5 (1) APPOINTMENT AND COMPENSATION OF EM6 PLOYEES.—The Review Committee may appoint and 

7 fix the compensation of such professional, non8 partisan staff (including staff with relevant experi9 ence in investigations and law enforcement) of the 

10 Review Committee as it considers necessary to per11 form its duties, who— 

12 (A) shall perform all official duties in a 

13 nonpartisan manner; and 

14 (B) may not engage in any partisan polit15 ical activity directly affecting any congressional 

16 or presidential election, or any nomination of a 

17 Federal judge or justice. 

18 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each employee of the 

19 Review Committee shall be professional and demon20 strably qualified for the position for which the em21 ployee is hired. 

22 (3) TERMINATION OF EMPLOYEES.—The em23 ployment of an employee of the Review Committee 

24 may be terminated at any time by the Review Com25 mittee. 


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•S 4177 IS

1 (4) CODE OF CONDUCT.—The Review Com2 mittee shall establish a code of conduct to govern 

3 the behavior of the members or employees of the Re4 view Committee, which shall include the avoidance of 

5 conflicts of interest. 

6 (r) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

7 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

8 such sums as may be necessary. 

9 SEC. 11. EXPEDITED IMPEACHMENT OF FEDERAL JUDGES. 

10 Section 355(b) of title 28, United States Code, is 

11 amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(3) EXPEDITED IMPEACHMENT.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—After the Judicial 

14 Conference transmits the determination and the 

15 record of proceedings under paragraph (1) or 

16 (2) to the House of Representatives, the deter17 mination and record shall be immediately re18 ferred to the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

19 House of Representatives. 

20 ‘‘(B) VOTE.—Not later than 30 legislative 

21 days of continuous session in the House of Rep22 resentatives after the Committee on the Judici23 ary of the House of Representatives receives the 

24 determination and the record of proceedings 

25 under subparagraph (A), the Committee on the 


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•S 4177 IS

1 Judiciary of the House of Representatives shall 

2 vote on whether to proceed with an investiga3 tion or an impeachment inquiry.’’. 

4 SEC. 12. RESTRICTIONS ON PROTECTIVE ORDERS AND 

5 SEALING OF CASES AND SETTLEMENTS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 111 of title 28, United 

7 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘§ 1660. Restrictions on protective orders and sealing 

10 of cases and settlements 

11 ‘‘(a) RESTRICTIONS ON ORDERS RELATING TO THE

12 DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In any civil action in which 

14 the pleadings state facts that are relevant to the 

15 protection of public health or safety, a court shall 

16 not enter, by stipulation or otherwise, an order oth17 erwise authorized under rule 26(c) of the Federal 

18 Rules of Civil Procedure restricting the disclosure of 

19 information obtained through discovery, an order 

20 otherwise authorized approving a settlement agree21 ment that would restrict the disclosure of informa22 tion obtained through discovery, or an order other23 wise authorized restricting access to court records 

24 unless in connection with the order the court finds— 


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1 ‘‘(A) that the order would not restrict the 

2 disclosure of information which is relevant to 

3 the protection of public health or safety; or 

4 ‘‘(B) that— 

5 ‘‘(i) the public interest in the disclo6 sure of past, present, or potential public 

7 health or safety hazards is outweighed by 

8 a specific and substantial interest in main9 taining the confidentiality of the informa10 tion or records in question; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) the requested order is no broader 

12 than necessary to protect the confiden13 tiality interest asserted. 

14 ‘‘(2) LIMIT ON EFFECT.—No order entered in 

15 accordance with paragraph (1), other than an order 

16 approving a settlement agreement, may continue in 

17 effect after the entry of final judgment unless at the 

18 time of, or after, the entry of the order the court 

19 makes a separate finding of fact that the require20 ments of paragraph (1) continue to be met. 

21 ‘‘(3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

22 paragraph (1) shall be construed to require the dis23 closure of the identity of individuals who disclose 

24 evidence of a violation of any law, rule, or regulation 


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1 or other fraud, waste, abuse, or misconduct or other 

2 persons protected from disclosure under Federal law. 

3 ‘‘(b) RESTRICTIONS ON ENFORCEMENT RELATING

4 TO FEDERAL AND STATE AGENCIES.—In any civil action 

5 in which the pleadings state facts that are relevant to the 

6 protection of public health or safety, a court shall not en7 force any provision of an agreement between or among 

8 parties to the civil action, or enforce an order entered in 

9 accordance with subsection (a)(1), to the extent that the 

10 provision or order prohibits or otherwise restricts a party 

11 from disclosing any information relevant to the civil action 

12 to any Federal or State agency with authority to enforce 

13 laws regulating an activity relating to the information. 

14 ‘‘(c) LIMITS ON SCOPE.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), a 

16 court shall not enforce any provision of a settlement 

17 agreement between or among parties to any civil ac18 tion in which the pleadings state facts that are rel19 evant to the protection of public health or safety 

20 that prohibits one or more parties from— 

21 ‘‘(A) disclosing the fact that the settlement 

22 was reached or the terms of the settlement (ex23 cluding any money paid) that involve matters 

24 relevant to the protection of public health or 

25 safety; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) discussing matters relevant to the 

2 protection of public health or safety involved in 

3 the civil action. 

4 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) applies un5 less the court finds that— 

6 ‘‘(A) the public interest in the disclosure of 

7 past, present, or potential public health or safe8 ty hazards is outweighed by a specific and sub9 stantial interest in maintaining the confiden10 tiality of the information in question; and 

11 ‘‘(B) the requested order is no broader 

12 than necessary to protect the confidentiality in13 terest asserted. 

14 ‘‘(d) REBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION RELATING TO

15 PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION.—For pur16 poses of implementing subsections (a)(1)(B)(i) and 

17 (c)(2)(A), when weighing the interest in maintaining con18 fidentiality under this section, there shall be a rebuttable 

19 presumption that the interest in protecting personally 

20 identifiable information of an individual outweighs the 

21 public interest in disclosure. 

22 ‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec23 tion shall be construed to permit, require, or authorize the 

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1 tion 1 of the Classified Information Procedures Act (18 

2 U.S.C. App.)).’’. 

3 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

4 The table of sections for chapter 111 of title 28, United 

5 States Code, is amended by adding after the item relating 

6 to section 1659 the following: 

‘‘1660. Restrictions on protective orders and sealing of cases and settlements.’’. 

7 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

8 this section shall— 

9 (1) take effect 30 days after the date of enact10 ment of this Act; and 

11 (2) apply only to orders entered in civil actions 

12 or agreements entered into on or after such date. 

13 SEC. 13. JUDICIAL WORKPLACE CLIMATE SURVEYS. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 21 of title 28, United 

15 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘§ 464. Judicial workplace climate surveys 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Judicial Conference of the 

19 United States shall administer a climate survey to each 

20 employee of a court of the United States about the work 

21 environment of the court, which shall— 

22 ‘‘(1) be administered not later than 18 months 

23 after the date of enactment of this section and every 

24 2 years thereafter; 

25 ‘‘(2) be voluntary; 


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1 ‘‘(3) survey respondents on the general work 

2 environment, including attitudes in the workplace re3 garding diversity and inclusion and harassment or 

4 discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, dis5 ability, sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(4) be anonymous and confidential, with notice 

8 of the anonymity and confidentiality made to the re9 spondent throughout the survey. 

10 ‘‘(b) TRANSMISSION OF INFORMATION.—Information 

11 obtained in a survey administered under subsection (a) 

12 shall be— 

13 ‘‘(1) made publicly available; and 

14 ‘‘(2) transmitted to the Committee on the Judi15 ciary of the Senate and the Committee on the Judi16 ciary of the House of Representatives, the Chief 

17 Justice of the United States, and the Judicial Con18 ference of the United States.’’. 

19 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

20 The table of sections for chapter 21 of title 28, United 

21 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol22 lowing: 

‘‘464. Judicial workplace climate surveys.’’. 

23 SEC. 14. SEVERABILITY. 

24 If any provision of this Act, an amendment made by 

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1 ment to any person or circumstance is held to be unconsti2 tutional, the remainder of this Act and of the amendments 

3 made by this Act, and the application of the remaining 

4 provisions of this Act and amendments to any person or 

5 circumstance, shall not be affected. 

Æ 


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