District of Columbia Judicial Nominations Reform Act
Key claim: This bill would abolish the DC Judicial Nomination Commission and transfer its nomination and chief-judge appointment powers directly to the President.
Abstract
(S2854 · 119th Congress) District of Columbia Judicial Nominations Reform Act This bill terminates the District of Columbia (DC) Judicial Nomination Commission. Currently, the commission recommends to the President nominees for judges for DC’s Superior Court and Court of Appeals, who must then be confirmed by the Senate. The commission also appoints the chief judges for these courts. The bill terminates the commission’s involvement in nominations and requires the President to appoint the chief judges. Latest action (2025-09-18): Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Why this matters
DC Superior Court and Court of Appeals handle the criminal, family, and civil matters affecting over 700,000 DC residents who lack voting representation in Congress; the Judicial Nomination Commission is one of the few mechanisms giving local residents a formal role in selecting those judges. Abolishing the Commission and vesting nomination power solely in the President would shift the balance from local-federal shared vetting toward direct executive control, raising due-process and self-governance questions distinct from the federal-judiciary reform debates.