I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8895 
To ensure funding of the United States trustees, extend temporary bankruptcy 
judgeships, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 8, 2020 
Mr. CICILLINE (for himself, Mr. SENSENBRENNER, and Mr. PERLMUTTER) in-
troduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the 
Judiciary 
A BILL 
To ensure funding of the United States trustees, extend 
temporary bankruptcy judgeships, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Bankruptcy Adminis-
tration Improvement Act of 2020’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) Because of the importance of the goal that 
the bankruptcy system is self-funded, at no cost to 
the taxpayer, Congress has closely monitored the 
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funding needs of the bankruptcy system, including 
by requiring periodic reporting by the Attorney Gen-
eral regarding the United States Trustee System 
Fund. 
(2) Congress has amended the various bank-
ruptcy fees as necessary to ensure that the bank-
ruptcy system remains self-supporting, while also 
fairly allocating the costs of the system among those 
who use the system. 
(3) Because the bankruptcy system is inter-
connected, the result has been a system of fees, in-
cluding filing fees, quarterly fees in chapter 11 
cases, and other fees, that together fund the courts, 
judges, United States trustees, and chapter 7 case 
trustees necessary for the bankruptcy system to 
function. 
(4) This Act and the amendments made by this 
Act— 
(A) ensure adequate funding of the United 
States trustees, supports the preservation of ex-
isting bankruptcy judgeships that are urgently 
needed to handle existing and anticipated in-
creases in business and consumer caseloads, 
and provides long-overdue additional compensa-
tion for chapter 7 case trustees whose caseloads 
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include chapter 11 reorganization cases that 
were converted to chapter 7 liquidation cases; 
and 
(B) confirm the longstanding intention of 
Congress that quarterly fee requirements re-
main consistent across all Federal judicial dis-
tricts. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act and the 
amendments made by this Act is to further the long-stand-
ing goal of Congress of ensuring that the bankruptcy sys-
tem is self-funded, at no cost to the taxpayer. 
SEC. 3. UNITED STATES TRUSTEE SYSTEM FUND; BANK-
RUPTCY FEES. 
(a) DEPOSITS OF CERTAIN FEES FOR FISCAL YEARS 
2021 THROUGH 2026.—Notwithstanding section 589a(b) 
of title 28, United States Code, for each of fiscal years 
2021 through 2026— 
(1) the fees collected under section 1930(a)(6) 
of such title, less the amount specified in subpara-
graph (2), shall be deposited as specified in sub-
section (b); and 
(2) $5,400,000 of the fees collected under sec-
tion 1930(a)(6) of such title shall be deposited in 
the general fund of the Treasury. 
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(b) UNITED STATES TRUSTEE SYSTEM FUND.—Sec-
tion 589a of title 28, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(f)(1) During each of fiscal years 2021 through 
2026 and notwithstanding subsections (b) and (c), the fees 
collected under section 1930(a)(6), less the amount speci-
fied in paragraph (2), shall be deposited as follows, in the 
following order: 
‘‘(A) First, the amounts specified in the De-
partment of Justice appropriations for that fiscal 
year, shall be deposited as discretionary offsetting 
collections to the ‘‘United States Trustee System 
Fund’’, pursuant to subsection (a), to remain avail-
able until expended. 
‘‘(B) Second, the amounts determined annually 
by the Director of the Administrative Office of the 
United States Courts that are necessary to reim-
burse the judiciary for the costs of administering 
payments under section 330(e) of title 11, shall be 
deposited as mandatory offsetting collections to the 
‘United States Trustee System Fund’, and trans-
ferred and deposited into the special fund estab-
lished under section 1931(a), and notwithstanding 
subsection (a), shall be available for expenditure 
without further appropriation. 
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‘‘(C) Third, the amounts determined annually 
by the Director of the Administrative Office of the 
United States Courts that are necessary to pay 
trustee 
compensation 
authorized 
by 
section 
330(e)(2) of title 11, shall be deposited as manda-
tory offsetting collections to the ‘United States 
Trustee System Fund’, and transferred and depos-
ited into the Chapter 7 Trustee Fund established 
under section 330(e) of title 11 for payment to 
trustees serving in cases under chapter 7 of title 11 
(in addition to the amounts paid under section 
330(b) of title 11), in accordance with that section, 
and notwithstanding subsection (a), shall be avail-
able for expenditure without further appropriation. 
‘‘(D) Fourth, any remaining amounts shall be 
deposited as discretionary offsetting collections to 
the ‘United States Trustee System Fund’, to remain 
available until expended. 
‘‘(2) Notwithstanding subsection (b), for each of fis-
cal years 2021 through 2026, $5,400,000 of the fees col-
lected under section 1930(a)(6) shall be deposited in the 
general fund of the Treasury.’’. 
(c) COMPENSATION OF OFFICERS.—Section 330 of 
title 11, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following: 
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‘‘(e)(1) There is established a fund in the Treasury 
of the United States, to be known as the ‘Chapter 7 Trust-
ee Fund’, which shall be administered by the Director of 
the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. 
‘‘(2) Deposits into the Chapter 7 Trustee Fund under 
section 589a(f)(1)(C) of title 28 shall be available until 
expended for the purposes described in paragraph (3). 
‘‘(3) For fiscal years 2021 through 2026, the Chapter 
7 Trustee Fund shall be available to pay the trustee serv-
ing in a case that is filed under chapter 7 or a case that 
is converted to a chapter 7 case in the most recent fiscal 
year (referred to in this subsection as a ‘chapter 7 case’) 
the amount described in paragraph (4) for the chapter 7 
case in which the trustee has rendered services in that fis-
cal year. 
‘‘(4) The amount described in this paragraph shall 
be the lesser of— 
‘‘(A) $60; or 
‘‘(B) a pro rata share, for each chapter 7 case, 
of the fees collected under section 1930(a)(6) of title 
28 and deposited to the United States Trustee Sys-
tem Fund under section 589a(f)(1) of title 28, less 
the amounts specified in section 589a(f)(1)(A) and 
(B) of title 28. 
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‘‘(5) The payment received by a trustee under para-
graph (3) shall be paid in addition to the amount paid 
under subsection (b). 
‘‘(6) Not later than September 30, 2021, the Director 
of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts 
shall promulgate regulations for the administration of this 
subsection.’’. 
(d) BANKRUPTCY FEES.—Section 1930(a) of title 28, 
United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by striking paragraph (6)(B) and inserting 
the following: 
‘‘(B)(i) During the 5-year period beginning 
on January 1, 2021, in addition to the filing fee 
paid to the clerk, a quarterly fee shall be paid 
to the United States trustee, for deposit in the 
Treasury, in each open and reopened case 
under chapter 11 of title 11, other than under 
subchapter V, for each quarter (including any 
fraction thereof) until the case is closed, con-
verted, or dismissed, whichever occurs first. 
‘‘(ii) The fee shall be the greater of— 
‘‘(I) 0.4 percent of disbursements or 
$250 for each quarter in which disburse-
ments total less than $1,000,000; and 
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‘‘(II) 0.8 percent of disbursements but 
not more than $250,000 for each quarter 
in which disbursements total at least 
$1,000,000. 
‘‘(iii) The fee shall be payable on the last 
day of the calendar month following the cal-
endar quarter for which the fee is owed.’’; and 
(2) in paragraph (7), in the first sentence, by 
striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting ‘‘shall’’. 
(e) APPLICABILITY.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the amendments made by this section 
shall take effect on the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
(2) EXCEPTIONS.— 
(A) COMPENSATION
OF
OFFICERS.—The 
amendments made by subsection (c) shall apply 
to any case filed on or after the date of enact-
ment of this Act— 
(i) under chapter 7 of title 11, United 
States Code; or 
(ii)(I) under chapter 11, 12, or 13 of 
that title; and 
(II) converted to a chapter 7 case 
under that title. 
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(B) BANKRUPTCY
FEES.—The amend-
ments made by subsection (d) shall apply to— 
(i) any case pending under chapter 11 
of title 11, United States Code, on or after 
the date of enactment of this Act; and 
(ii) quarterly fees payable under sec-
tion 1930(a)(6) of title 28, United States 
Code, as amended by subsection (d), for 
disbursements made in any calendar quar-
ter that begins on or after the date of en-
actment of this Act. 
SEC. 4. EXTENSION OF TEMPORARY OFFICE OF BANK-
RUPTCY JUDGES IN CERTAIN JUDICIAL DIS-
TRICTS. 
(a) TEMPORARY OFFICE OF BANKRUPTCY JUDGES 
AUTHORIZED BY THE BANKRUPTCY JUDGESHIP ACT OF 
2017.— 
(1) EXTENSIONS.—The temporary office of 
bankruptcy judges authorized by section 1003(a) of 
the Bankruptcy Judgeship Act of 2017 (28 U.S.C. 
152 note) for the district of Delaware and the east-
ern district of Michigan are extended until the appli-
cable vacancy specified in paragraph (2) in the office 
of a bankruptcy judge for the respective district oc-
curs. 
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(2) VACANCIES.— 
(A) DISTRICT
OF
DELAWARE.—The 1st 
and 2d vacancies in the office of a bankruptcy 
judge for the district of Delaware— 
(i) occurring 5 years or more after the 
date established by section 1003(b)(1) of 
the Bankruptcy Judgeship Act of 2017 (28 
U.S.C. 152 note), and 
(ii) resulting from the death, retire-
ment, resignation, or removal of a bank-
ruptcy judge, 
shall not be filled. 
(B) EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN.— 
The 1st vacancy in the office of a bankruptcy 
judge for the eastern district of Michigan— 
(i) occurring 5 years or more after the 
date established by section 1003(b)(3) of 
the Bankruptcy Judgeship Act of 2017 (28 
U.S.C. 152 note), and 
(ii) resulting from the death, retire-
ment, resignation, or removal of a bank-
ruptcy judge, 
shall not be filled. 
(3) APPLICABILITY OF OTHER PROVISIONS.— 
Except as provided in paragraphs (1) and (2), all 
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other provisions of section 1003 of the Bankruptcy 
Judgeship Act of 2017 (28 U.S.C. 152 note) remain 
applicable to the temporary office of bankruptcy 
judges referred to in paragraph (1). 
(b) TEMPORARY OFFICE OF BANKRUPTCY JUDGES 
AUTHORIZED BY THE BANKRUPTCY JUDGESHIP ACT OF 
2005 AND EXTENDED BY THE TEMPORARY BANKRUPTCY 
JUDGESHIPS EXTENSION ACT OF 2012 AND THE BANK-
RUPTCY JUDGESHIP ACT OF 2017.— 
(1) EXTENSIONS.—The temporary office of 
bankruptcy judges authorized for the following dis-
tricts by section 1223(b) of the Bankruptcy Judge-
ship Act of 2005 (28 U.S.C. 152 note), extended by 
section 2(a) of the Temporary Bankruptcy Judge-
ships Extension Act of 2012 (28 U.S.C. 152 note), 
and further extended by section 1002(a) of the 
Bankruptcy Judgeship Act of 2017 (28 U.S.C. 152 
note) are extended until the applicable vacancy spec-
ified in paragraph (2) in the office of a bankruptcy 
judge for the respective district occurs: 
(A) The district of Delaware. 
(B) The southern district of Florida. 
(C) The district of Maryland. 
(D) The eastern district of Michigan. 
(E) The district of Nevada. 
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(F) The eastern district of North Carolina. 
(G) The district of Puerto Rico. 
(H) The eastern district of Virginia. 
(2) VACANCIES.— 
(A) SINGLE VACANCIES.—Except as pro-
vided in subparagraphs (B), (C), (D), (E), and 
(F), the 1st vacancy in the office of a bank-
ruptcy judge for each district specified in para-
graph (1)— 
(i) occurring 5 years or more after the 
date established by section 1002(a)(2) of 
the Bankruptcy Judgeship Act of 2017 (28 
U.S.C. 152 note), and 
(ii) resulting from the death, retire-
ment, resignation, or removal of a bank-
ruptcy judge, 
shall not be filled. 
(B) DISTRICT
OF
DELAWARE.—The 3d, 
4th, 5th, and 6th vacancies in the office of a 
bankruptcy judge for the district of Delaware— 
(i) occurring 5 years or more after the 
date established by section 1002(a)(2) of 
Bankruptcy Judgeship Act of 2017 (28 
U.S.C. 152 note), and 
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