Overview

• Amends the State Justice Institute Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. 10701 and 10705) to authorize funding for a State judicial threat intelligence and resource center
• Passed the Senate on November 20, 2025; currently held at the desk in the House
• Responds to rising threats against state and local judges by creating centralized security infrastructure

Who does this affect?

• Main groups: State and local judges, court staff, law enforcement agencies responsible for judicial security, national nonprofit organizations with judicial security expertise
• Who benefits: Judges and court staff gain enhanced security training, threat monitoring, and physical security assessments; law enforcement receives standardized threat evaluation protocols
• Teen impact score: 2/10 (minimal teen connection—affects judicial system security infrastructure, not teen daily life)

What This Bill Does

• Defines 'eligible organization' as national nonprofits with expertise in judicial security, courthouse design standards, and experience working with trial courts, appellate courts, rural courts, and limited-jurisdiction courts at state and local levels (Section 2, amending 42 U.S.C. 10701)
• Authorizes State Justice Institute to provide financial and technical support to eligible organizations to establish, implement, and operate the threat intelligence center (Section 3, amending 42 U.S.C. 10705(c))
• Center must provide judicial officer safety education and training for judges, courts, and local law enforcement; create security resources and guides; conduct physical security assessments for courts, judges' homes, and facilities where judicial officers conduct court business
• Center must proactively monitor threats to state and local judges and court staff; coordinate with federal, state, and local law enforcement to mitigate threats
• Center must develop standardized incident reporting and threat evaluation practices in coordination with law enforcement and fusion centers; build national database for reporting, tracking, and sharing threat information
• Requires State Justice Institute to submit annual reports to Senate and House Judiciary Committees within 1 year of center establishment, detailing number of threats to state and local judiciary members and court staff, with breakdown of threat types and seriousness levels (Section 4)

Legislative Status

• Passed the Senate on November 20, 2025
• Currently held at the desk in the House of Representatives, awaiting House action

In short

• Bill creates a national center to protect state and local judges from threats and violence.
• Center would monitor threats, train law enforcement on judicial security, and assess security at courthouses and judges' homes.
• A national database would track all threats and incidents against judges and court staff.
• State Justice Institute would fund nonprofit organizations with judicial security expertise to run the center.
• Annual reports to Congress would detail threat numbers, types, and severity.

Why should I care?

Judges make decisions that affect criminal cases, family disputes, and civil lawsuits in communities across the country. When judges face threats or violence, it undermines the justice system's ability to function fairly and independently. This bill addresses a growing problem: attacks and intimidation targeting judges have increased in recent years, sometimes affecting their families and homes. By creating a centralized system to monitor threats and improve security, the bill aims to protect judicial independence—the principle that judges should make decisions based on law, not fear. While this doesn't directly change how courts operate for most people, a safer judiciary helps ensure the legal system works as intended when families need it.