I 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8609 
To amend title 28, United States Code, to establish an Office of Ethics 
Counsel and an Office of Investigative Counsel within the Supreme 
Court of the United States. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 4, 2024 
Mr. GOLDMAN of New York (for himself, Mr. NADLER, Mr. JOHNSON of Geor-
gia, Ms. SHERRILL, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. IVEY, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. 
KRISHNAMOORTHI, Mr. COHEN, Ms. NORTON, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mrs. RA-
MIREZ, Mr. LANDSMAN, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. TONKO, Ms. SCHA-
KOWSKY, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. 
JACKSON LEE, Mr. QUIGLEY, Ms. BROWNLEY, Mr. GOTTHEIMER, Ms. 
BONAMICI, and Ms. PLASKETT) introduced the following bill; which was 
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend title 28, United States Code, to establish an 
Office of Ethics Counsel and an Office of Investigative 
Counsel within the Supreme Court of the United States. 
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 ‘‘Supreme Court Ethics 
and Investigations Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE OFFICE OF ETHICS COUN-
SEL WITHIN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE 
UNITED STATES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 45 of title 28, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘§ 678. Office of Ethics Counsel 
‘‘(a) THE OFFICE OF ETHICS COUNSEL.—The Chief 
Justice is authorized to establish an Office of Ethics 
Counsel within the Supreme Court of the United States— 
‘‘(1) constituted by one chief ethics counsel who 
may employ such officers and employees, subject to 
the provisions of title 5, governing appointments in 
the competitive service, and the provisions of chapter 
51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title re-
lating to classification and General Schedule pay 
rates; and 
‘‘(2) to advise and provide guidance to justices 
of the Supreme Court, and their spouses, on matters 
of judicial ethics, including— 
‘‘(A) financial disclosure requirements; 
‘‘(B) the acceptance of gifts; 
‘‘(C) political activity; 
‘‘(D) conflicts of interest and recusal; and 
‘‘(E) the unauthorized disclosure of official 
Court documents. 
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‘‘(b) ETHICS COUNSELS.— 
‘‘(1) STAFFING AND COMPENSATION OF COUN-
SELS.— 
‘‘(A) CHIEF ETHICS COUNSEL.—The chief 
ethics counsel within the Office of Ethics Coun-
sel— 
‘‘(i) may not be employed by the 
Court on the date of enactment of this sec-
tion; 
‘‘(ii) shall be appointed by the Chief 
Justice; 
‘‘(iii) shall serve not more than two 6- 
year terms; and 
‘‘(iv) shall receive an annual rate of 
pay of at least $225,000. 
‘‘(B) OTHER
COUNSELS.—Any counsel 
other than the chief ethics counsel within the 
Office of Ethics Counsel— 
‘‘(i) may not be employed by the 
Court on the date of enactment of this sec-
tion; 
‘‘(ii) shall be appointed by the chief 
ethics counsel; 
‘‘(iii) shall serve not more than two 6- 
year terms; and 
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‘‘(iv) shall receive an annual rate of 
pay of at least $180,000. 
‘‘(2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each counsel of the 
Office of Ethics Counsel shall— 
‘‘(A) be licensed to practice law in a State 
or territory of the United States and a member 
of the bar in good standing; and 
‘‘(B) possess at least 5 years of experience 
as a practicing attorney. 
‘‘(3) EXPERTISE.—Each counsel shall be an in-
dividual of exceptional public standing who is specifi-
cally qualified to serve within the Office of Ethics 
Counsel by virtue of the individual’s education, 
training, and experience, as determined by the Chief 
Justice. 
‘‘(4) TERMINATION
OF
COUNSELS.—The em-
ployment of a counsel may only be terminated by the 
Chief Justice for cause. 
‘‘(c) TRAINING.—On a biannual basis, the Office of 
Ethics Counsel shall provide, and each justice shall take, 
a training course on the judicial ethics matters described 
in subsection (a)(2). 
‘‘(d) REPORT.—On an annual basis, the chief ethics 
counsel shall submit to the Committees on the Judiciary 
of the House of Representatives and of the Senate a report 
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on the ethics advice given by the Office of Ethics Counsel 
during the previous year, including— 
‘‘(1) the number of times advice was sought 
and given; 
‘‘(2) whether the advice was sought by judicial 
officers or by judicial employees; 
‘‘(3) information about the topics covered by 
the advice given, including the number of questions 
related to gifts, financial disclosures, nonpublic in-
formation, and political activity; 
‘‘(4) the number and types of mitigation meas-
ures that were recommended, including recusal, di-
vestiture, resignation; 
‘‘(5) the number of times advice described in 
this subsection was not followed by the individual to 
whom it was given, if known by the Office. 
‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘gift’ means any gratuity, favor, 
discount, entertainment, hospitality, loan, forbear-
ance, or other item having monetary value. The term 
includes services as well as gifts of training, trans-
portation, local travel, lodgings and meals, whether 
provided in-kind, by purchase of a ticket, payment in 
advance, or reimbursement after the expense has 
been incurred. 
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‘‘(2) The term ‘political activity’ means political 
engagements, such as paid speaking events, fund-
raisers, or donations to political parties, politicians, 
political action groups, or endorsements of political 
candidates.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
of chapter 45 of title 28, United States Code, is amended 
by inserting after the item relating to section 678 the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘678. Office of Ethics Counsel.’’. 
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE OFFICE OF INVESTIGA-
TIVE COUNSEL WITHIN THE SUPREME COURT 
OF THE UNITED STATES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 45 of title 28, United 
States Code, as amended by this Act, is further amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘§ 679. Office of Investigative Counsel 
‘‘(a) OFFICE
OF INVESTIGATIVE COUNSEL.—The 
Chief Justice is authorized to establish an Office of Inves-
tigative Counsel within the Supreme Court of the United 
States— 
‘‘(1) constituted by one Chief Investigative 
Counsel and at least two additional investigative 
counsels; and 
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‘‘(2) to review and investigate ethics complaints 
against justices arising from their actions or the ac-
tions of their spouses and dependents. 
‘‘(b) INVESTIGATIVE COUNSELS.— 
‘‘(1) STAFFING AND COMPENSATION OF COUN-
SELS.— 
‘‘(A) CHIEF
INVESTIGATIVE
COUNSEL.— 
The Chief Investigative Counsel— 
‘‘(i) may not be employed by the court 
on the date of enactment of this section; 
‘‘(ii) shall be appointed by the Chief 
Justice; 
‘‘(iii) shall serve not more than one 6- 
year term; and 
‘‘(iv) shall receive an annual rate of 
pay of at least $225,000. 
‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL
INVESTIGATIVE
COUN-
SELS.—The investigative counsels— 
‘‘(i) may not be employed by the court 
on the date of enactment of this section; 
‘‘(ii) shall be appointed by the Chief 
Investigative Counsel; 
‘‘(iii) shall serve at the pleasure of the 
Chief Investigative Counsel; and 
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‘‘(iv) shall receive an annual rate of 
pay of at least $180,000. 
‘‘(C) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each investigative 
counsel of the Office of Investigative Counsel 
shall— 
‘‘(i) be licensed to practice law in a 
State or territory of the United States and 
a member of the bar in good standing; and 
‘‘(ii) possess at least 7 years of experi-
ence as a practicing attorney. 
‘‘(D) 
EXPERTISE.—Each 
investigative 
counsel and the Chief Investigative Counsel 
shall be an individual of exceptional public 
standing who is specifically qualified to serve 
within the Office of Investigative Counsel by 
virtue of the individual’s education, training, 
and experience. 
‘‘(E) TERMINATION
OF
COUNSELS.—The 
employment of the Chief Investigative Counsel 
may only be terminated by the Chief Justice for 
cause. 
‘‘(2) SUBPOENA POWER.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For the discharge of 
their duties, the Chief Investigative Counsel 
shall have the authority to issue subpoenas to 
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compel witnesses to appear and testify and to 
produce books, papers, correspondence, memo-
randa, documents, or other relevant records. 
The Chief Investigative Counsel may issue sub-
poenas requiring the attendance and testimony 
of witnesses and the production of any evidence 
relating to any matter under investigation by 
the Office of Investigative Counsel, which the 
Office is empowered to investigate by this sec-
tion. The attendance of witnesses and the pro-
duction of evidence may be required from any 
place within the United States at any des-
ignated place of hearing within the United 
States. 
‘‘(B) FAILURE TO OBEY A SUBPOENA.—If 
a person refuses to obey a subpoena issued 
under subparagraph (A), the Chief Investigative 
Counsel may apply to a United States district 
court for an order requiring that person to ap-
pear before the Office of Investigative Counsel 
to give testimony, produce evidence, or both, re-
lating to the matter under investigation. The 
application may be made within the judicial dis-
trict where the hearing is conducted or where 
that person is found, resides, or transacts busi-
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ness. Any failure to obey the order of the court 
shall be punishable by contempt of court. 
‘‘(C) SERVICE OF SUBPOENAS.—The sub-
poenas of the Office of Investigative Counsel 
shall be served in the manner provided for sub-
poenas issued by a United States district court 
under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure for 
the United States district courts. 
‘‘(D) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—All process 
of any court to which application is made under 
subparagraph (B) may be served in the judicial 
district in which the person required to be 
served resides or may be found. 
‘‘(c) ETHICS COMPLAINTS.— 
‘‘(1) FILING.—An ethics complaint against a 
justice may be filed with the Office of Investigate 
Counsel by— 
‘‘(A) the chair or ranking minority member 
of the Committee on the Judiciary of the House 
of Representatives or of the Senate; 
‘‘(B) the Majority Leader or Minority 
Leader of the Senate; or 
‘‘(C) the Speaker or the Minority Leader 
of the House of Representatives. 
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‘‘(2) REVIEW.—Not later than 60 days after an 
ethics complaint is filed under paragraph (1), the 
Office of Investigative Counsel shall review the com-
plaint and determine whether a full investigation is 
appropriate. In making a determination under this 
paragraph, the Office shall consider whether the al-
leged behavior of a justice violates the Code of Con-
duct of the Supreme Court, the Judicial Code of 
Conduct, or any applicable law or regulation. Upon 
making a determination under this paragraph, the 
chief counsel shall respond to each ethics complaint 
filed under paragraph (1), regardless of whether the 
Office of Investigative Counsel determines that an 
investigation is appropriate. 
‘‘(3) INVESTIGATION.—If the Office determines 
that a full investigation is appropriate, it shall open 
the investigation not later than 15 days after mak-
ing such determination. 
‘‘(4) REPORTING.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Office of Inves-
tigative Counsel shall submit to the Chief Jus-
tice a report containing its findings and rec-
ommendations about an ethics complaint filed 
under paragraph (2) (including in the case of a 
complaint with respect to which the Office de-
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termines that no violation has occurred), except 
that in the case of an ethics complaint with re-
spect to which the Chief Justice is the subject, 
the Office shall deliver such report to the most 
senior associate justice. 
‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—A report under sub-
paragraph (A) shall include— 
‘‘(i) each violation of the Code of Con-
duct for the Supreme Court committed by 
the justice who was the subject of the in-
vestigation under paragraph (3), including 
any such violation that arose as a result of 
the actions of a spouse or dependant of the 
justice; and 
‘‘(ii) substantive and actionable rec-
ommendations from the Office of Inves-
tigative Counsel including recusal, divest-
ment and neutralization conflicts of inter-
est, and other remedies. 
‘‘(C) PUBLICATION.— 
‘‘(i) CHIEF JUSTICE.—The Chief Jus-
tice may, in his sole discretion, release to 
the public a report received under subpara-
graph (A), but may not alter such a report 
in any way, except to redact any classified 
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or personally identifiable information. In 
the case of an ethics complaint with re-
spect to which the Chief Justice is the sub-
ject, the most senior associate justice is 
authorized to carry out this clause. 
‘‘(ii) AVAILABILITY TO CONGRESS.— 
Not later than 10 days after completing a 
report under subparagraph (A), the Office 
of Investigative Counsel shall make the re-
port available to— 
‘‘(I) the Committees on the Judi-
ciary of the House of Representatives 
and of the Senate; 
‘‘(II) the Committee on Oversight 
and Accountability of the House of 
Representatives; and 
‘‘(III) the Committee on Home-
land Security and Governmental Af-
fairs of the Senate. 
‘‘(iii) DUTY TO INFORM THE ATTOR-
NEY GENERAL.—In carrying out the duties 
of the Office, the Investigative Counsel 
shall report expeditiously to the Attorney 
General whenever the Investigative Counsel 
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has reasonable grounds to believe there has 
been a violation of Federal criminal law.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
of chapter 45 of title 28, United States Code, is amended 
by inserting after the item relating to section 678, as 
added by section 2, the following: 
‘‘679. Office of Investigative Counsel.’’. 
SEC. 4. SEVERABILITY. 
If any provision of this Act, or any application of such 
provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be un-
constitutional, the remainder of this Act and the applica-
tion of this Act to any other person or circumstance shall 
not be affected. 
Æ 
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