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103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 3654
To amend title 28, United States Code, to divide the ninth judicial circuit
of the United States into two circuits, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
NOVEMBER 22, 1993
Mr. KOPETSKI (for himself, Mrs. UNSOELD, Mr. FARR of California, Mr.
YOUNG of Alaska, and Mr. SMITH of Oregon) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To amend title 28, United States Code, to divide the ninth
judicial circuit of the United States into two circuits,
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 ‘‘Ninth Circuit Court
of Appeals Reorganization Act of 1993’’.
SEC. 2. CREATION OF TWELFTH CIRCUIT.
(a) COMPOSITION OF FIFTH AND TWELFTH CIR-
CUITS.—Section 41 of title 28, United States Code, is
amended—
(1) in the text before the table, by striking
‘‘thirteen’’ and inserting ‘‘14’’;
(2) in the table, by striking the item relating to
the ninth circuit and inserting the following new
item:
‘‘Ninth ...........................................
Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon,
Washington, Hawaii, Guam, the
Northern Mariana Islands, and the
Northern and Eastern Districts of
California.’’;
and
(3) by inserting after the item relating to the
eleventh circuit the following new item:
‘‘Twelfth ........................................
Arizona, Nevada, and the Central and
Southern Districts of California.’’.
(b) NUMBER OF CIRCUIT JUDGES.—The table con-
tained in section 44(a) of title 28, United States Code,
is amended—
(1) in the item relating to the ninth circuit by
striking ‘‘28’’ and inserting ‘‘14’’; and
(2) by inserting after the item relating to the
eleventh circuit the following:
‘‘Twelfth ........................................
‘‘14’’.
(c) PLACES FOR HOLDING COURT.—The table con-
tained in section 48(a) of title 28, United States Code,
is amended—
(1) in the item relating to the ninth circuit by
striking ‘‘Los Angeles’’; and
(2) by inserting after the item relating to the
eleventh circuit the following:
‘‘Twelfth ........................................
Los Angeles, Reno, and Phoenix.’’.
SEC. 3. RESOLUTION OF INTERCIRCUIT CONFLICTS.
(a) SPECIAL PANEL.—Section 46 of title 28, United
States Code, is amended—
(1) by amending the section heading to read as
follows:
‘‘§ 46. 
Assignment 
of 
judges; 
panels; 
hearings;
Intercircuit Court; quorum’’;
(2) in subsection (d)—
(A) by redesignating such subsection as
subsection (e); and
(B) by striking ‘‘paragraph (c)’’ and in-
serting ‘‘subsections (c) and (d)’’; and
(3) by inserting after subsection (c) the follow-
ing:
‘‘(d)(1) The judges of the Courts of Appeals for the
Ninth and Twelfth Circuits whose official duty stations
are in the State of California shall constitute the
Intercircuit California En Banc Court. The Intercircuit
Court shall convene as necessary to resolve any conflict
between a decision of the Court of Appeals for the Ninth
Circuit and a decision of the Court of Appeals for the
Twelfth Circuit that results or is likely to result in the
imposition of inconsistent or otherwise nonuniform Fed-
eral law within the State of California.
‘‘(2) An appeal or other proceeding shall be reheard
by the Intercircuit Court upon a majority vote of the
judges of that court who are in regular active service. Any
judge of the Intercircuit Court who is in regular active
service may request a vote to determine whether a decision
of the Court of Appeals of which that judge is a member
should be ordered reheard by the Intercircuit Court. The
appropriateness of rehearing by the Intercircuit Court
may be suggested by a party, but a vote of the Intercircuit
Court to order rehearing shall not be taken unless re-
quested by a judge of the Intercircuit Court who is in reg-
ular active service and who is a member of the Court of
Appeals in which the appeal or other proceeding is pend-
ing.
‘‘(3) Rehearing by the Intercircuit Court shall not be
favored and ordinarily shall be considered only when the
failure to resolve a conflict described in paragraph (1)
would be unusually burdensome to the administration of
Federal law within the State of California.
‘‘(4) The clerk of the Court of Appeals for the Ninth
Circuit, and the clerk of the Court of Appeals for the
Twelfth Circuit, shall, during alternate 2-year periods,
serve as the clerk of the Intercircuit Court and shall pro-
vide such services as are needed by the Intercircuit
Court.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The item relating
to section 46 in the table of sections at the beginning of
chapter 3 of title 28, United States Code, is amended to
read as follows:
‘‘46. Assignment of judges; panels; hearing; Intercircuit Court; quorum.’’.
SEC. 4. ASSIGNMENT AND SENIORITY OF JUDGES.
(a) ACTIVE SERVICE JUDGES.—
(1) NEW NINTH CIRCUIT.—Each circuit judge
in regular active service of the former ninth circuit
whose official duty station on the day before the ef-
fective date of this Act is in Alaska, Idaho, Mon-
tana, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, Guam, the
Northern Mariana Islands, or the Northern or East-
ern District of California is assigned as a circuit
judge of the new ninth circuit as of such effective
date.
(2) TWELFTH CIRCUIT.—Each circuit judge in
regular active service of the former ninth circuit
whose official duty station on the day before the ef-
fective date of this Act is in Arizona, Nevada, or the
Central or Southern District of California is as-
signed as a circuit judge of the twelfth circuit as of
such effective date.
(b) SENIOR JUDGES.—Each judge who is a senior
judge of the former ninth circuit on the day before the
effective date of this Act may elect to be assigned to the
new ninth circuit or to the twelfth circuit and shall notify
the Director of the Administrative Office of the United
States Courts of such election.
(c) SENIORITY.—The seniority of each judge—
(1) who is assigned under subsection (a), or
(2) who elects to be assigned under subsection
(b),
shall run from the date of the commission of such judge
as a judge of the former ninth circuit.
SEC. 5. PENDING PROCEEDINGS.
The following applies to any case in which, on the
day before the effective date of this Act, an appeal or other
proceeding has been filed with the former ninth circuit:
(1) If the matter has been submitted for deci-
sion, further proceedings in respect of the matter
shall be had in the same manner and with the same
effect as if this Act had not been enacted.
(2) If the matter has not been submitted for de-
cision, the appeal or proceeding, together with the
original papers, printed records, and record entries
duly certified, shall, by appropriate orders, be trans-
ferred to the court to which it would have gone had
this Act been in full force and effect at the time
such appeal was taken or other proceeding com-
menced, and further proceedings in respect of the
case shall be had in the same manner and with the
same effect as if the appeal or other proceeding had
been filed in such court.
(3) A petition for rehearing or a petition for re-
hearing en banc in a matter decided before the effec-
tive date of this Act, or submitted before the effec-
tive date of this Act and decided on or after the ef-
fective date as provided in paragraph (1) of this sec-
tion, shall be treated in the same manner and with
the same effect as though this Act had not been en-
acted. If a petition for rehearing en banc is granted,
the matter shall be reheard by a court comprised as
though this Act had not been enacted.
SEC. 6. TRANSITIONAL PROVISION.
The new ninth circuit and the twelfth circuit shall
be deemed to be a single circuit for purposes of sections
291(a) and 292(a) of title 28, United States Code, with
respect to any judge serving in the former ninth circuit
on the day before the effective date of this Act.
SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.
As used in sections 4, 5, and 6—
(1) the term ‘‘former ninth circuit’’ means the
ninth judicial circuit of the United States as in ex-
istence on the day before the effective date of this
Act;
(2) the term ‘‘new ninth circuit’’ means the
ninth judicial circuit of the United States established
by the amendment made by section 2(a)(2); and
(3) the term ‘‘twelfth circuit’’ means the twelfth
judicial circuit of the United States established by
the amendment made by section 2(a)(3).
SEC. 8. ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS.
The court of appeals for the ninth circuit as con-
stituted on the day before the effective date of this Act
may take such administrative action as may be required
to carry out this Act. Such court shall cease to exist for
administrative purposes on July 1, 1997.
SEC. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall
take effect on October 1, 1994.
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