Jim Sensenbrenner: “Mr. Speaker, this bill is necessary for the proper functioning of the Federal court system. The legislation addresses…”

“Mr. Speaker, this bill is necessary for the proper functioning of the Federal court system. The legislation addresses various judicial process matters, as well as personnel and compensation issues. I will briefly mention a few of the major provisions included in this legislation. The bill makes changes in places of holding court in order to alleviate hardships placed upon parties, jurors, lawyers, and judges that must otherwise travel great distances to participate. This will have a positive impact on the administration of justice. The bill will permit judges to submit annual summary reports on wiretap orders acted on during the previous calendar year, such as prosecutors do. This change would simplify the reporting requirements for the judges and their staffs without affecting the accuracy or timeliness of the reporting required by statute. The bill gives territorial judges in the District Courts of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands comparable retirement arrangements as other judges. The bill includes the judicial branch personnel in the Organ Donor Leave Program, and provides Federal judges with protection against the malicious recording of fictitious liens.”