Congress’ decision to fund the federal courts through a continuing resolution this fiscal year has led to the deferral of dozens of judicial security projects and the continuation of a hiring freeze for federal public defenders, a circuit court judge told a House Judiciary subcommittee on Tuesday.
The hearing, focused on fiscal accountability and oversight of the federal courts, at times dipped into dark themes about the gravity of judicial security, with high-profile political violence and threats to judges and lawmakers at various levels of government.
Judge Amy St. Eve of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, who also chairs the Judicial Conference Committee on the Budget, outlined concerns with funding for judicial security, telling lawmakers that the best way to help with the budget is to simply fully fund the system.
“We did not receive what we asked for in our court security account in ’24 or in ’25, and because of that we had to make some tough decisions about what we could use those funds for,” St. Eve said.
The federal courts have put a priority on court security officers and on a vulnerability management program, but that meant courthouse equipment was put on the back burner, she said.
“So there’s a lot of equipment out there that needs [updating] that we just have not been able to do because we don’t have the funds to do it,” the appellate judge said.
The judiciary has asked Congress for $892 million for its court security account in fiscal 2026, about a 19 percent increase from fiscal 2025, as well as about $1.8 billion for federal public defenders, or a 21.7 percent increase. House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said Republicans are comfortable “making sure there’s security” but are less inclined to give increases on other topics that the judiciary has requested.
Democrats on the subcommittee said the importance of judicial security has only intensified with the Trump administration’s verbal attacks against judges and efforts from some Republicans to target judges with impeachment. At the hearing, Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., bluntly asked Judge Michael Y. Scudder Jr., also of the 7th Circuit, if a federal judge being murdered would be surprising.
“That would be tragic beyond words,” Scudder said. “And I think that’s implicit in the question, and I hope everyone would recognize that.”
A judge who fears that their family is in danger might be less able to think clearly and rule objectively on the merits of a case, said Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., the top Democrat on the full Judiciary Committee.
“Trump’s ad hominem rhetoric against individual judges has helped fuel an increase in threats to judicial security,” Raskin said.
Judicial security should not be a partisan issue, he added.
“We must oppose all violence and all threats of violence against the federal judiciary from whatever quarter they arise,” Raskin said.
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