As a new round of judicial conferences for 2014 got underway in recent days for federal judges, lawmakers in the Congress continue to keep a wary eye on that spending by the Judicial Branch, especially as court officials from the Chief Justice on down have lodged repeated public complaints about tight federal budgets in recent years.
"While there are still plenty of lavish conferences going on, several courts have scaled down their conference spending, which should be applauded," said Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA).
"The entire federal government must figure out how to live within its means and sacrifices have to be made," Grassley added in a statement. "Anything less won’t be tolerated by the taxpayers who are footing the bill."
The latest conferences started last week, when federal judges from the Third Circuit, which covers Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, met for three days at a resort in Hershey, Pennsylvania; it was the first time those judges had gathered since 2011, in part because of budget worries.
"As you correctly note, it has been three years since our last Judicial Conference," Third Circuit Executive Margaret Wiegand told me, as the conference's website trumpeted the "First Bench Bar Conference in 3 Years."
As the Third Circuit judges ended their conference, federal judges from the Seventh Circuit started their own separate meeting on Sunday in Chicago, gathering at the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel, which advertises "five-star services" like an 80,000 square foot 'modern lifestyle garden,' fire pits, lap pool and more for those staying at the hotel.
But Seventh Circuit officials say they aren't blowing the lid off the budget with their meetings.
"For the 2013 Circuit conference in Indianapolis, we had 75 judges attending and the cost of travel for the judges and everyone else from the judiciary was $93,469.08," said Collins Fitzpatrick, the Circuit Executive for the Seventh Circuit, which includes Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.
Other federal Judicial Conferences scheduled for this year include:
+ The Second Circuit will meet June 11-13 in Saratoga Springs, New York.
+ The Ninth Circuit will meet July 14-17 in Monterey, California.
+ The Eighth Circuit will meet August 5-8 in Omaha, Nebraska.
It was stories about the Ninth Circuit's 2011 conference at a resort on the Hawaiian island of Maui that created a storm of criticism for the federal judiciary; more stories about the cost of those conferences then pushed the Ninth Circuit to delay their 2013 gathering until 2014.
Other circuits have made similar decisions; the Sixth Circuit scrapped their usual gathering because of budget concerns, and the Eleventh Circuit has already decided to delay a 2015 meeting by a year.
"Since 1997, the Eleventh Circuit has held conferences only every two years in order to maximize the benefits and minimize the costs of these important events," said James Gerstenlauer, the circuit's top executive.
"As an additional cost containment measure, the Eleventh Circuit has extended the time between conferences to three years and scheduled the next conference for 2016," Gerstenlauer told me.
Total conference costs = Judges + staff - (attorneys fees)
One interesting feature of a judicial conference is how they are paid for; the federal government picks up the tab for travel and lodging for judges and staff, but the judges have developed a system where the attorneys who practice before them defray the costs of some of the conference.
"Attorneys pay a $350 registration fee," said Millie Adams, the Circuit Executive for the Eighth Circuit.
"The fee is used to help pay for the cost of the conference and also pays for registered lawyers to receive continuing legal education credit for attending certain conference sessions."
That fee differs depending on the circuit; the Third Circuit charged attorneys $395 for early registration, and then the price went up as the days ticked by to this year's gathering.
"After March 1, registration was $480, and after April 18, it was $535," said Wiegand, the Third Circuit Executive.
Those registration fees from attorneys add up quickly for a conference, and cut down on the cost for Uncle Sam.
For example, the Eleventh Circuit's 2013 bill from the Westin Hotel and Savannah Convention Center for food and beverage plus facility expenses was $226,753 - but by charging attorneys and other attendees, the Eleventh Circuit reduced that by $97,796 to $128,957.
According to documents submitted to Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), other costs for the judges and staff at the 2013 Eleventh Circuit conference in Savannah included:
+ $16,556.44 for Transportation for judges and staff
+ $136,312.80 for Lodging, meals and incidental expenses
+ $39,453.68 for Privately Owned Vehicle Mileage
+ $32,885.57 for Miscellaneous (taxes, tolls, parking, etc.)
Not all of that cost was from the judges, as the Eleventh Circuit brought over two dozen staffers to the 2013 conference - here is a list of their positions as given to Congress:
Circuit Executive
Clerk of Court
Circuit Librarian
Acting Chief Circuit Mediator
Senior Staff Attorney
Admin. Asst. to Circuit Executive
Deputy Circuit Executive
Procurement Specialist
Assistant Circuit Executive
Administrative Specialist
Automation Support Specialist
Assistant Circuit Executive
PC Manager
Financial Specialist
Financial Specialist
Administrative Assistant
Management Analyst
Assistant Data Network Administrator
Administrative Assistant
Courtroom Deputy
Courtroom Deputy
SD Georgia Staff
Financial Specialist
Financial Specialist
Management Analyst
Clerk of Court
Chief Deputy Clerk
Chief, Office of Human Resources
Management Analyst
HR Specialist
HR Specialist
Why were there human resources specialists at a judicial conference? The circuit's executive James Gerstenlauer says they were on hand to meet "with individual judges who attended the conference in order to provide information and counseling about retirement and other benefits."
Gerstenlauer also told me that eight of the employees listed above were from the district court in Savannah, so they had minimal travel costs - all part of the staff needed to deal with a conference attended by 476 attorneys and judges.
To compare to other circuits, the Tenth Circuit brought 30 staffers to its gathering at the Broadmoor last year in Colorado Springs, while only seven staffers went to the Eighth Circuit conference.
Like other federal agencies when it comes to conferences, the Judicial Branch strongly defends such meetings, arguing they provide necessary interaction among judges and lawyers.
"Holding conferences via teleconference or another remote method is not a feasible substitute for the circuit judicial conferences," said John Bates, the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts.
In a letter sent last September to Sen. Grassley, Bates said the Judicial Branch understands the need not to waste money on frivolous or excessive gatherings.
"We all recognize the need to effectively utilize Judiciary resources, especially in this time of limited funding," Bates wrote, arguing that cancellation of such conferences would have a "detrimental impact on the administration of justice."
"Meeting in person at these biennial conferences allows for a robust exchange of ideas and best practices, fulfilling the statutory responsibility of improving the administration of justice," Bates concluded.
Still, these gatherings cost money - sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars each - and this new round of conferences comes just a few months after Chief Justice John Roberts made clear what he thinks the biggest issues is for the federal judiciary - money.
"The budget remains the single most important issue facing the courts." the Chief Justice said at the end of 2013 in his annual report on the Judiciary.
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