Schiff unveils bill extending FOIA transparency to judiciary

Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) unveiled legislation Tuesday that would extend the powers of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to the judicial branch.

The legislation from Schiff, who is running for the Senate in California, comes amid deepening scrutiny of Supreme Court justices. Conservative Justice Clarence Thomas in particular has come under criticism from Democrats for accepting trips from Republican donors.

Schiff said his Judicial FOIA Expansion Act introduced Tuesday would increase transparency in the federal judiciary by establishing a right of public access to records that relate to the federal judicial branch.

“Increasing transparency within the judiciary is a crucial step towards restoring the people's trust in our justice system,” Schiff said in a statement.

“My Judicial FOIA Expansion Act will provide the American people greater insight into the inner workings of courts by providing public and journalistic access to the Judiciary’s administrative records. This reform and others are increasingly necessary to begin to restore faith in our judicial branch,” he added.

FOIA allows individuals to request access to federal agency records or information unless that information falls under certain exemptions. The law only applies to records held by federal agencies, not those held by Congress or the judicial branch.

The press release from Schiff’s office states that the act would allow record requests of the judicial branch’s “administrative apparatus” while also providing “important extensions.” It would also extend the Privacy Act “to maintain privacy protections” in record requests to the judicial branch.

Schiff’s introduction of the bill comes as the Supreme Court has been under scrutiny for more than a year after a series of reports detailed various undisclosed luxury trips and gifts involving multiple justices.

Democratic lawmakers have introduced legislation in the past to respond to these ethics concerns after increasing oversight of the court.

The Supreme Court unveiled a new ethics code last year, but Democrats, including Schiff, have signaled that it was not enough.

“If there’s no way to enforce it, if there’s no one to investigate it, if there’s no repercussion for violating it, then it’s a pretty worthless code,” Schiff said at the time on MSNBC. “They’re going to have to do better than that. I think Congress ought to move forward with its own code of ethics imposed on the Supreme Court.”