Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to concur in the Senate amendment to H.R. 2657, the District of Columbia Family Court Act of 2001. These Senate amendments have been approved by the sponsor of the legislation, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay), and the original cosponsors of the legislation, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Davis), the gentlewoman from District of Columbia (Ms. Norton), and myself, following diligent work between staff of both houses. The Senate amendments before us raise the ceiling of the number of judges for the Family Court to 15 judges. This provision would enable the chief judge to address unforeseeable needs if judges and magistrates are not able to keep up with the caseload. The amended bill further allows for emergency temporary reassignment of certain judges who are qualified to serve on the Family Court and who would not be subject to the length of term, should the 15 Family Court judges not be able to keep up with the docket. These temporary emergency judges are encouraged to volunteer to serve in this capacity to the greatest extent possible. These provisions modify the restriction in the District of Columbia Code to allow the chief judge of the Superior Court to exceed the overall cap of 59 judges if necessary to maintain a full complement of 15 judges in Family Court.”