Judiciary Says Courthouses Are in Crisis, Seeks Real Property Authority

The condition of federal courthouses around the country is in a deepening state of crisis, compelling the Judiciary to ask Congress (PDF) for authority to directly manage properties that are essential to carrying out its constitutional mission.

The General Services Administration (GSA) has long served as the Judiciary’s landlord. But over more than a decade, buildings that house the Judiciary have accumulated a growing backlog of $8.3 billion worth of critical repairs for basic courthouse systems, such as roofs, elevators, lighting, doors, and windows. Some emergency repairs, such as storm and water damage, can take years to complete. 

“Federal courthouses are in crisis. Without immediate action, the problems will continue to worsen,” said Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr., director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. “Action is needed now to reverse a downward spiral of critical-system failures, long-term underfunding of repairs, security risks, and climbing costs.”

On Feb. 24, the Judiciary advised Congress (PDF) of its request, which requires federal legislation to enact. Judiciary leaders also met with GSA leaders to notify them of the request. They said a transition of properties from GSA to the Judiciary would be gradual and orderly.

This new authority would provide the Judiciary with the same real property authorities held by the other two branches of government. The Architect of the Capitol manages property needs for the Legislative Branch, while GSA manages properties for most Executive Branch agencies.

Judiciary leaders emphasized that they have been slow to request the new authority, known as Real Property Authority (RPA). The Judicial Conference first authorized the Conference’s Executive Committee to seek Real Property Authority in 1989, and reaffirmed that position in 2006. 

Since that time, Judiciary leaders generally have focused on working with GSA to try to improve service and contain costs. However, ongoing efforts to improve services and contain costs have failed to achieve sufficient success, and continuing the status quo is no longer sustainable, the Judiciary said.

“The current model no longer reliably delivers the level of maintenance, investment, and responsiveness courthouses require,” said Judge Glenn T. Suddaby, chair of the Space and Facilities Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States.

According to a Judiciary background paper (PDF) sent to Congress in conjunction with the request, critical systems are broken or well past their useful life in many court buildings. In the last year alone, courts have documented incidents that include:

• employees, the public, and judges being trapped in elevators for hours;
• ceilings collapsing in a courtroom during trial;
• legionella bacteria being discovered in water supplies without remediation plans; and
• mold making court employees and judges sick.

Court employees cite long waits for emergency repairs, some of which are never made.

In the Everett McKinley Dirksen federal courthouse in Chicago, a valve on a water pipe failed in October 2024, causing damage on six floors. To date, construction has not begun, and one courtroom remains closed nearly 18 months after the original leak. GSA took four years to replace failing light fixtures in four courtrooms, making the repairs only after dim lighting conditions repeatedly disrupted jury trials. 

“Our courts cannot do the important work that they do when their buildings are plagued with decades of delinquent maintenance,” said Chief Judge Virginia M. Kendall, of the Northern District of Illinois. “Our citizens deserve courthouses in their communities that provide access to justice in a safe and clean environment.”

Judiciary Needs Are Widespread

The Judiciary occupies 396 government-owned buildings and 379 leased spaces, with facilities in every state and territory. Government buildings owned by GSA account for more than 80 percent of the federal court systems’ space portfolio. The Judiciary currently is paying annual rent of $1.3 billion to GSA, which is responsible for construction and upkeep of federal courts and support offices. 

Some courts are housed in general-purpose federal buildings, but most are in specialized court buildings. Executive Branch tenants in such buildings, including the U.S. Marshals Service and U.S. Attorney’s Office, are often housed in primary courthouses. 

While repair issues are epidemic in many federal courts, they are especially challenging in aging and historic courthouses, which are found throughout the federal court system. At the nearly 100-year-old historic courthouse in Asheville, North Carolina, delinquent repairs affect virtually every aspect of life: health, security, and building integrity. 

The building’s heating and air-conditioning systems go back many decades, making them often ineffective and challenging to maintain. In the winter, there is so little humidity in the air that judges and court staff have experienced headaches, nosebleeds, and sore throats during proceedings. These conditions reverse in the summer when high humidity results in mold concerns and similar health concerns in addition to respiratory issues.   

“The most frustrating thing about a wonderful but broken building like Asheville is knowing what is needed to fix the problems, but not having the authority or the tools to make it happen,” said Kevin Sutton, an architect for the federal courts. “Giving the courts greater authority without added layers of bureaucracy would empower us to directly attack our buildings’ needs.”  

Judge Suddaby said, “Courthouses are capital-intensive and operationally complex. They consume a disproportionate share of attention, risk, and limited capital dollars. The Judiciary could make the administration of justice its guiding priority. This would focus our investments on the most urgent safety, security, and operational needs.” 

How Real Property Authority Would Work

If granted Real Property Authority, the Judiciary said, it is equipped to carry out projects based on the Branch’s constitutional mission, and can complete repairs faster and more effectively than under the current system. This is essential to reducing the Judiciary’s repair backlog.

A letter sent to House and Senate (PDF) committees included draft legislation to enact Real Property Authority for the Judiciary. Beginning 180 days after passage, the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts would notify GSA which court properties the Judiciary would assume management of. The Judiciary would perform all facets of property management for any transferred properties. 

According to the background paper sent to Congress, the transition process would be gradual and orderly. The Judiciary would start by identifying properties for transfer in no more than 10 judicial districts, expanding its capacity for courthouse management before seeking to manage additional properties. 

The legislation would authorize the Judiciary over time to transfer properties “critical to the constitutional mission of the Judiciary.” In practice, the Judiciary’s background paper noted, the Judiciary’s focus is on buildings where federal courts are a primary tenant. Buildings that mostly house non-court-related agencies would not be prioritized for transfer.

Judiciary leaders said the proposed transfer of major courthouse properties would also enable GSA to focus on Executive Branch agencies and work with a more consistent group of office properties.

“We see this as an opportunity for constructive realignment, not separation,” Conrad said. “GSA would ultimately shed $8.3 billion in delinquent maintenance it lacks the funding and resources necessary to remediate.”

In addition to faster, more effective building service, the transfer would support the Judiciary’s function as a co-equal branch of the federal government, by enabling it to manage properties critical to the Judiciary’s constitutional mission. 

“Real property authority will empower the Judiciary to coordinate directly with Congress on critical courthouse needs,” Conrad said. “It will ensure that the Judiciary can control and maintain the buildings it occupies to safely fulfill its constitutional mission more effectively.”