Courthouse Affordability and Space Efficiency Act of 2025
Latest action · Dec 1, 2025 Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedMay 15, 2025
- Passed HouseSep 15, 2025
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Courthouse Affordability and Space Efficiency (CASE) Act of 2025
This bill provides statutory authority for the General Services Administration (GSA) courtroom sharing policy and limits construction of new courthouses.
Under the bill, GSA must ensure courtroom sharing by magistrate, bankruptcy, and senior district judges. Specifically
- in courthouses with 10 or more active district judges, GSA must provide two courtrooms per 3 active district judges (except such courthouses may contain not less than 9 courtrooms for active district judges);
- in courthouses with 3 or more bankruptcy judges, GSA must provide one courtroom per 2 bankruptcy judges;
- in courthouses with 3 or more senior district judges, GSA must provide one courtroom per 2 senior district judges; and
- in courthouses with 3 or more magistrate judges, GSA must provide one courtroom per 2 magistrate judges.
GSA is prohibited from constructing a new courthouse that does not comply with the courtroom sharing requirements. Additionally, if a new courthouse will add capacity in the GSA inventory, existing space in the same courthouse complex must be fully utilized or relinquished from such inventory.
GSA must update the U.S. Courts Design Guide to reflect these requirements within 180 days after the bill's enactment. (The Design Guide sets forth the federal judiciary’s requirements for the design, construction, and renovation of court facilities and is intended for use by individuals involved in federal court construction projects.)
Cosponsors 1
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on May 15, 2025.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | Original | May 15, 2025 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Transportation and Infrastructure Committee | Referred May 15, 2025Discharged Jun 11, 2025Markup Jun 11, 2025Reported Sep 8, 2025 |
| Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Subcommittee | Referred May 16, 2025 | |
| Senate | Environment and Public Works Committee | Referred Sep 16, 2025Discharged Nov 20, 2025Referred Dec 1, 2025 |
Actions 20
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Dec 1, 2025Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
- Nov 20, 2025Senate returned papers to the House.
- Nov 20, 2025Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Nov 19, 2025Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works discharged by Unanimous Consent.
- Nov 19, 2025Senate returned papers to House by by Unanimous Consent.
- Sep 19, 2025House requested return of papers pursuant to H.Res. 747
- Sep 16, 2025Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
- Sep 15, 2025Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H4278)
- Sep 15, 2025Mr. Taylor moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- Sep 15, 2025Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H4278)
- Sep 15, 2025DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 3426.
- Sep 15, 2025Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- Sep 8, 2025Reported by the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. H. Rept. 119-240.
- Sep 8, 2025Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 197.
- Jun 11, 2025Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Discharged
- Jun 11, 2025Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
- Jun 11, 2025Ordered to be Reported by Voice Vote.
- May 16, 2025Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
- May 15, 2025Introduced in House
- May 15, 2025Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
In the Congressional Record 3
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | Debate and remarks S8245 | Dan Sullivan R-AK | Nov 19, 2025 |
| House | Debate and remarks H4478Text printed H4478 | — | Sep 19, 2025 |
| House | Debate and remarks H4278, H4279Text printed H4278 | David J. Taylor R-OH, Jefferson Shreve R-IN, Shomari Figures D-AL | Sep 15, 2025 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 171, no. 82, May 15, 2025, page H2104.
Printed hearings 1
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serial No. 119-31 | CUTTING COSTS, ADDING VALUE: THE FUTURE OF FEDERAL PROPERTY52 pages | Transportation and Infrastructure Committee | Dec 11, 2025 |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
Titles 7
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To amend title 40, United States Code, to limit the construction of new courthouses under certain circumstances, and for other purposes.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Courthouse Affordability and Space Efficiency (CASE) Act of 2025
- Short Title(s) as Reported to House
- Courthouse Affordability and Space Efficiency (CASE) Act of 2025
- Short Title(s) as Passed House
- Courthouse Affordability and Space Efficiency Act of 2025
- Short Titles from RFS (Referred to Senate) bill text
- Courthouse Affordability and Space Efficiency (CASE) Act of 2025
- Courthouse Affordability and Space Efficiency Act of 2025
- Official Title from EH (Engrossed in House) bill text
- To amend title 40, United States Code, to limit the construction of new courthouses under certain circumstances, and for other purposes.
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Government Operations and Politics.
Text 5
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Dec 1, 2025Referred in Senate
- Nov 19, 2025Returned to the House by Unanimous Consent
- Sep 15, 2025Engrossed in House
- Sep 8, 2025Reported in House
- May 15, 2025Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
