I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4778 
To amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to provide for the 
automatic appointment of judges to the District of Columbia courts 
without the advice and consent of the Senate, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 28, 2021 
Ms. NORTON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Oversight and Reform, and in addition to the Committee on 
Rules, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 
case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 
the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to pro-
vide for the automatic appointment of judges to the 
District of Columbia courts without the advice and con-
sent of the Senate, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘District of Columbia 
Courts Vacancy Reduction Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. AUTOMATIC APPOINTMENT OF JUDGES TO DIS-
TRICT OF COLUMBIA COURTS. 
(a) APPOINTMENTS BY PRESIDENT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 433(a) of the Dis-
trict of Columbia Home Rule Act (sec. 1–204.33(a), 
D.C. Official Code) is amended by striking ‘‘the 
President shall nominate’’ and all that follows and 
inserting the following: ‘‘from the list of persons rec-
ommended by the District of Columbia Judicial 
Nomination Commission established under section 
434, the President shall appoint all judges of the 
District of Columbia courts.’’. 
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 433 
of such Act (sec. 1–204.33, D.C. Official Code) is 
further amended— 
(A) in the heading, by striking ‘‘NOMINA-
TION AND’’; 
(B) in subsection (b) in the matter pre-
ceding paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘nominated 
or’’; 
(C) in paragraph (2) of subsection (b), by 
striking ‘‘his nomination’’ and inserting ‘‘ap-
pointment’’; 
(D) in paragraph (3) of subsection (b), by 
striking ‘‘his nomination’’ and inserting ‘‘ap-
pointment’’; 
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(E) in paragraph (4) of subsection (b), by 
striking ‘‘the President, for such nomination 
and appointment,’’ and inserting ‘‘the President 
for such appointment’’; 
(F) in paragraph (5) of subsection (b), by 
striking ‘‘his nomination’’ and inserting ‘‘ap-
pointment’’; 
(G) in the fifth sentence of subsection (c), 
by striking ‘‘then the President may nominate’’ 
and all that follows and inserting ‘‘the Presi-
dent may reappoint such candidate as judge.’’; 
(H) in the sixth sentence of subsection (c), 
by striking ‘‘not to so nominate such declaring 
candidate, he shall nominate another can-
didate’’ and inserting ‘‘not to so reappoint such 
declaring candidate, the President shall appoint 
another candidate’’; and 
(I) in the seventh sentence of subsection 
(c), by striking ‘‘then the President shall not 
submit to the Senate for advice and consent the 
renomination of the declaring candidate as 
judge’’ and inserting ‘‘the President shall not 
reappoint the declaring candidate as judge’’. 
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SEC. 3. AUTHORIZING CONGRESS TO PREVENT APPOINT-
MENT 
THROUGH 
RESOLUTION 
OF 
DIS-
APPROVAL. 
(a) RESOLUTIONS OF DISAPPROVAL.—Part C of title 
IV of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act (sec. 1– 
204.31 et seq., D.C. Official Code) is amended by insert-
ing after section 434 the following new section: 
‘‘AUTHORIZING CONGRESS TO PREVENT APPOINTMENT 
THROUGH RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL 
‘‘SEC. 434A. (a) REQUIRING TRANSMISSION OF NO-
TICE OF APPOINTMENT TO CONGRESS.—Notice of the ap-
pointment of a judge of a District of Columbia court under 
this part shall be transmitted to the Speaker of the House 
of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the 
Senate by— 
‘‘(1) the President, in the case of an appoint-
ment under section 433; or 
‘‘(2) the District of Columbia Judicial Nomina-
tion Commission, in the case of an appointment 
under section 434(d)(1). 
‘‘(b) TIMING OF APPOINTMENT.—The appointment 
of a judge of the District of Columbia courts shall take 
effect upon the expiration of the 30-calendar-day period 
(excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, and any day 
on which neither House is in session because of an ad-
journment sine die, a recess of more than three days, or 
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an adjournment of more than three days) beginning on 
the date on which notice of the appointment is transmitted 
to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 
President pro tempore of the Senate under subsection (a), 
unless during such 30-calendar-day period there has been 
enacted into law a joint resolution disapproving of the ap-
pointment. 
‘‘(c) APPLICATION OF EXPEDITED PROCEDURES FOR 
CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTIONS OF DISAPPROVAL OF 
COUNCIL ACTS TO CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTIONS OF 
DISAPPROVAL OF APPOINTMENT OF JUDGES.— 
‘‘(1) APPLICATION OF PROCEDURES.—The pro-
visions of section 604, except subsections (d), (e), 
and (f) of such section, shall apply with respect to 
a joint resolution described in paragraph (2) in the 
same manner as such provisions apply to a joint res-
olution disapproving an act of the District of Colum-
bia Council which is described in section 604(b). 
‘‘(2) RESOLUTIONS DESCRIBED.—A resolution 
described in this paragraph is a resolution, the mat-
ter after the resolving clause of which is as follows: 
‘That the llllllll disapproves of the ap-
pointment of llllllll as a judge of the 
llllllll.’, with the first blank filled in 
with the name of the House of Congress involved, 
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the second blank filled in with the name of the indi-
vidual involved, and the third blank filled in with the 
name of the District of Columbia court involved, but 
does not include any resolution which specifies more 
than one action.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 
to section 434 the following new item: 
‘‘Sec. 434A. Authorizing Congress to prevent appointment through resolution of 
disapproval.’’. 
SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by this 
Act shall apply with respect to appointments of judges of 
the District of Columbia courts which are made on or after 
the date of the enactment of this Act. 
(b) TRANSITION RULE FOR CURRENT NOMINEES.— 
Section 434A of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act 
(as added by section 3(a)) shall apply with respect to an 
individual whose nomination as a judge of the District of 
Columbia courts is pending as of the date of the enact-
ment of this Act as follows: 
(1) In the case of an individual nominated by 
the President under section 433 of such Act (as in 
effect prior to the effective date of this Act), the 
President shall be deemed to have transmitted notice 
of the appointment of the individual as a judge of 
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the District of Columbia courts to the Speaker of 
the House of Representatives and the President pro 
tempore of the Senate on the date of the enactment 
of this Act. 
(2) In the case of an individual nominated by 
the District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Com-
mission under section 434 of such Act (as in effect 
prior to the effective date of this Act), the Commis-
sion shall be deemed to have transmitted notice of 
the appointment of the individual as a judge of the 
District of Columbia courts to the Speaker of the 
House of Representatives and the President pro 
tempore of the Senate on the date of the enactment 
of this Act. 
Æ 
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