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37 Third Branch 1 (2005)

handle is hein.journals/thirdbran37 and id is 1 raw text is: THIRD BRANCH Newsletter of the Federal Courts Vol. 37 Number I January 2005 2004 YEAR-END REPORT ON THE FEDERAL JUDICIARY Overview This Year-End Report on the Fed- eral Judiciary is my 19th. In last year's report, I focused on the need to repair the relationship be- tween the Judicial Branch and the Leg- islative Branch. There is still much work to do, but during the year many judges and members of Congress have worked together to begin to improve the relationship, and I thank all of them for their efforts. In part because of criticism by members of Congress, in May I appointed a committee, chaired by Justice Stephen Breyer, to evaluate and report on the way the Judicial Conduct and Disability Act of 1980 is being implemented. At the invitation of Representatives Judy Biggert and Adam Schiff, I met with the bipartisan Congressional Caucus on the Judicial Branch. Sitting down face-to-face helps to establish better working rela- tionships. I hope that these and simi- lar efforts continue in the coming years. In this report, I will address the funding crisis currently affecting the federal Judiciary. I will also focus on the recently mounting criticism of judges for engaging in what is often re- ferred to as judicial activism. The Judiciary' Budget Crisis The Fiscal Year 2005 budget process has been very difficult. The Judiciary's appropriation for the fiscal year that be- gan on October 1 was not signed into law until De- cember 8. The recurring delays in enacting annual appropriations bills have severely disrupted its op- erations. Nine out of the last 10 fiscal years began with no appropriations bills passed for the Judi- ciary. The continuing uncer- tainties and delays in the funding process, along with rising fixed costs that outpace any in- Chief Justice creased funding from Congress, have required many courts to impose hiring freezes, furloughs, and reductions in force. In some cases they have had to cut back services available to the public. During Fiscal Year 2004, this resulted in a 6 percent reduction-il,350 positions-in em- ployees other than judges and the staff who work in their chambers. The area of probation and pretrial services was particularly hard hit. In March I asked the Executive Committee of the Judicial Conference, chaired by Chief Judge Carolyn Dineen King, to develop an integrated eWilliam H. Rehnquist strategy for controlling costs in Fis- cal Year 2005 and beyond. The Com- mittee did a yeoman's job, produc- ing a comprehensive cost-contain- ment strategy, which was endorsed unanimously by the Judicial Confer- ence in September 2004. The strategy entails a moratorium on some court- house construction projects; improv- ing workforce efficiency; a study of basic changes in the Judicial Branch's approach to compensation for non-judges; promoting more ef- fective use of technology; a study of possible program changes to reduce qnpplnl Inip . np.r.ia1122110

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