An undisclosed number of Supreme Court justices are reportedly prepared to testify before Congress later this month about their budget request for the first time since 2019.
A few justices will testify in front of the Senate Appropriations Committee on May 20, sources told Punchbowl News on Thursday. As of now, the committee’s calendar does not list a hearing for that date with any of the nine justices.
The House Appropriations Committee also wishes to hear from the justices, with ranking member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) calling for them to cross the street and answer some questions. She heard from Justice Elena Kagan that they are willing to testify.
House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole (R-OK) is also open to the idea, but he told Punchbowl News he doesn’t want to see the hearing devolve “into some sort of circus” with questions about the court’s high-profile cases that may involve the Trump administration.
After returning to session next week, the House and Senate will hold multiple appropriations hearings for federal agencies’ fiscal 2027 budget requests.
The Supreme Court is requesting increased funding to bolster security, among other purposes, in light of rising threats to the judiciary.
The high court’s budget request for the upcoming fiscal year totals more than $228 million in discretionary funding, up roughly $20 million from the prior year. Of the total, $14.6 million is reserved for protection and security.
Over a third of $18 million in funds that are intended to go toward taking care of the court building and grounds is set aside for an exterior visitor screening facility design, which was recommended following physical security assessments.
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While appearances from justices on Capitol Hill haven’t happened in the past seven years, they were much more common in the past. Between 1960 and 2011, justices appeared at congressional hearings at least once per year.
In 2019, Justices Samuel Alito and Kagan testified about the Supreme Court’s budget request for fiscal 2020 at a House subcommittee hearing. The last time a sitting justice appeared at a Senate hearing was in 2011, when Justices Stephen Breyer and Antonin Scalia testified about the constitutional role of federal judges. Breyer has since retired, and Scalia died in 2016.
