[Pages H6212-H6213]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 CONSOLIDATION OF CERTAIN DIVISIONS IN THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ALABAMA

  Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 7177) to amend title 28, United States Code, to consolidate 
certain divisions in the Northern District of Alabama, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 7177

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. CONSOLIDATION OF CERTAIN DIVISIONS IN THE NORTHERN 
                   DISTRICT OF ALABAMA.

       Section 81(a) of title 28, United States Code, is amended--
       (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``seven'' and inserting ``five'';
       (2) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and Lauderdale'' and 
     inserting ``Lauderdale, and Lawrence'';
       (3) in paragraph (2)--
       (A) by striking ``Lawrence,'';
       (B) by inserting after ``Madison,'' the following: 
     ``Marshall,''; and
       (C) by striking ``and Decatur'';
       (4) in paragraph (4), by striking ``Clay, Cleburne,'' and 
     inserting ``Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne, DeKalb, Etowah, Saint 
     Clair,'';
       (5) in paragraph (5), by striking ``Greene, Pickens, 
     Sumter, and Tuscaloosa'' and inserting ``Fayette, Greene, 
     Lamar, Marion, Pickens, Sumter, Tuscaloosa, Walker, and 
     Winston'';
       (6) by striking paragraph (6); and
       (7) by striking paragraph (7).

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Issa) and the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on H.R. 7177.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, this is, in fact, a good, commonsense reform that has 
come from the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Strong), who has shepherded 
this bill.
  At this time, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Alabama (Mr. Strong) to speak on his bill.
  Mr. STRONG. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of my bill, H.R. 7177, which will 
improve the organization of the Federal courts in the Northern District 
of Alabama.
  Specifically, this bill will ensure that Alabamians are assigned to 
the closest and most convenient Federal courthouse, which will 
eliminate unnecessary and burdensome travel expenses. This commonsense 
proposal, which was

[[Page H6213]]

approved by the Judicial Conference of the United States earlier this 
year, reflects how cases have been managed following courthouse 
closures for over 60-plus years since these boundaries were last 
amended.
  The Judicial Conference said it best: H.R. 7177 supports the 
efficient administration of justice.
  I thank the Members of the Alabama delegation who have joined me to 
support the efficient administration of justice in north Alabama. I 
urge all of our colleagues to join me in supporting this proposal.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 7177, which would 
amend title 28 of the United States Code to consolidate certain 
divisions in the Northern District of Alabama. By reducing the 
divisions of the Northern District of Alabama from seven to five and 
reorganizing some Alabama counties within those divisions, this bill 
reallocates the judicial docket across the district, ensuring that the 
2.8 million residents of the Northern District of Alabama have access 
to a speedy judicial system.
  When a courthouse closes, we may not hear about it here in our 
Nation's Capital, but the people who live and work in those judicial 
districts are intimately aware of the deleterious effect of courthouse 
closures on their community: Office workers lose their jobs. Other 
nearby courthouses become overcrowded, and thousands of people are left 
wondering if our judicial system will still work for them when they 
need it most.
  That is exactly what is happening in the Northern District of 
Alabama. After courthouses closed, the district itself requested these 
changes, which were elevated to Congress by the Judicial Conference of 
the United States earlier this year. These changes prescribed in this 
legislation are not meaningless, technical edits. Moving some Alabama 
counties to different judicial divisions would make a world of 
difference to the people who live and work in those communities.
  About 59 percent of the population of Alabama lives in the Northern 
District, which includes 31 of the State's 67 counties, and 2 of the 
State's most populous cities, Birmingham and Huntsville. Since so many 
Americans rely on the Northern District of Alabama to access our 
courthouse doors, the judicial system there must be able to spread a 
large volume of cases across its different divisions.
  This is not a question of apportionment. Our country cannot have a 
flourishing justice system when residents are unduly burdened in their 
attempts to access it.
  Madam Speaker, I thank the Representatives from Alabama, especially 
the sponsor, Congressman Strong, for introducing this legislation, and 
I encourage all of my colleagues to support the bill.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of 
my time for the purposes of closing.
  Madam Speaker, by reallocating the judicial docket across the 
district, this bill ensures that 2.8 million residents of the Northern 
District of Alabama have access to a speedy judicial system. In a 
Nation such as ours, where the population is constantly evolving, our 
judicial system must be responsive to the needs of residents no matter 
where they live.
  Constituents in different divisions of the Northern District of 
Alabama deserve a courthouse that is geographically convenient so that 
they do not have to drive hours away from home to access the American 
judicial system.
  Responding to the needs of these residents is a small step in the 
right direction toward making our judicial system work for everyone, 
not just those who are fortunate enough to live close to a Federal 
courthouse in a metropolis.
  Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to support the bill and send it to 
the Senate, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for 
the purposes of closing.
  Madam Speaker, we are the United States of America, and it is, in 
fact, the people of the State of Alabama who have asked for this, the 
people's Representatives of Alabama who have unanimously supported it, 
and the Judicial Conference which studied it and found it to be 
appropriate.
  Today, I am honored to be part of the other 49 States ratifying the 
need of one in their best interest as they brought it to us, which is, 
in fact, what the United States was formed for, is to support the 
common good and the individual States in any way that we can.

  Madam Speaker, I urge Members to support this bill, vote it out, and 
send it to the Senate. I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 7177, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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