Neguse's Colorado Judgeship Act Incorporated Into Judicial Legislative Package

Press Release

Today, Congressman Joe Neguse's Colorado Judgeship Act was included in a new legislative package to increase the number of district court judges throughout the country. The District Court Judgeship Act of 2021, introduced by Congressman Hank Johnson, Chair of the Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet Subcommittee, adds 203 additional district court judges across 47 judicial districts, including adding additional judgeships in Colorado, as proposed in the Neguse legislation.

"I am incredibly pleased to see our Colorado Judgeship Act included in Congressman Johnson's comprehensive legislative package to add to the number of district court judgeships across the country. We hope to continue to grow the momentum on this issue so we can bring this proposal up for swift consideration and deliver for the people of Colorado," said Congressman Joe Neguse. "Given Colorado's recent growth, and in particular the population growth in Northern Colorado, as well as the overwhelming dockets our Federal district court currently faces, increasing the number of district judges in Colorado and the localities in which court can be held will ensure access to timely and efficient justice for Coloradans."

The last comprehensive judgeship legislation was enacted in 1990, and the number of district court judges has not increased at all since 2003. This is the longest period in the country's history that Congress has gone without authorizing any new district court judgeships. Some districts have not had any new district judgeships since 1978.

In contrast, the judiciary's workload has exploded over the last 30 years. Total case filings across the federal courts have grown by nearly 40% since 1991, and cases have become increasingly complex and time consuming. At a February 2021 hearing held by the Judiciary Committee's subcommittee on the Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet, federal district judges warned that "this is not the judicial system that the United States Constitution envisions," that "the status quo simply cannot meet the Constitutional mandate to administer meaningful justice for all of its citizens," and that "we cannot fulfill our obligations without congressional action to create new judgeships."

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