Tom Udall: “I rise today to speak to Section 312 of the Conference Report accompanying H.R. 2215, as well as to support passage of…”

“I rise today to speak to Section 312 of the Conference Report accompanying H.R. 2215, as well as to support passage of this important legislation. On the 21st of May this year, I wrote to Congressman Sensenbrenner and Ranking Member Conyers to express my concern for the dire shortages of federal judges in the State of New Mexico, and to request that the Committee authorize an additional judgeship for the District of New Mexico in the 21st Century Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization Act. Today, I want to thank Chairman Sensenbrenner, Ranking Member Conyers and the members of the Conference Committee for including appropriations for an additional temporary judgeship for the State of New Mexico in Section 312 of the Report. New Mexico is the 3rd busiest judicial district in the nation behind southern California and western Texas. In 1996, the Judiciary Council recommended that New Mexico receive one new permanent judgeship and one temporary judgeship. Two years later, the council reiterated that recommendation. Then, in 2000, the Judicial Conference recommended that New Mexico receive two permanent judgeships and one temporary judgeship.”