Bill > HR9778

This bill, titled the "Judicial FOIA Expansion Act," aims to increase public access to certain records held by the United States judiciary by amending the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Privacy Act. FOIA, a federal law, generally grants the public the right to request access to records from any federal agency, while the Privacy Act governs how federal agencies collect, maintain, use, and disseminate personally identifiable information. This bill specifically expands the definition of "court of the United States" to include various judicial branch entities like the Supreme Court, federal appellate and district courts, and even organizations providing security for federal courthouses, while excluding the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. Crucially, it introduces a new section that makes specific types of judicial records subject to FOIA requests, such as attorney disciplinary proceedings (excluding deliberations), complaints and investigations against judges or court personnel, meeting calendars and minutes of the Federal Judicial Conference, research materials from the Federal Judicial Center, completed jury selection forms, performance reports for judges and personnel, technical audit plans for PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records), and annual reports to Congress. While these records will now be accessible, the bill also outlines exemptions, preventing access to information related to ongoing cases or records not in the possession of the courts. Furthermore, any information provided by a court under these laws must be in a machine-readable format, and the Attorney General will represent courts in any FOIA or Privacy Act claims. The bill also authorizes $10 million for fiscal year 2027 to implement these changes, including establishing an office within the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, and includes a severability clause to ensure that if one part of the law is found invalid, the rest remains in effect.