Title 28Judiciary and Judicial ProcedureRelease 119-73

§621 Board; composition, tenure of members, compensation

Title 28 › Part PART III— - COURT OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES › Chapter CHAPTER 42— - FEDERAL JUDICIAL CENTER › § 621

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

A Board will run and oversee the Center. The Chief Justice of the United States is the permanent chair. The Board also includes two circuit judges, three district judges, one bankruptcy judge, and one magistrate judge chosen by vote of the Judicial Conference of the United States. Those elected judges may be active or retired under section 371(b) but may not be members of the Judicial Conference. The Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts is also a permanent member. Elected members serve four-year terms. If someone is chosen to finish another member’s term because of death, disability, retirement under section 371(a) or 372(a), or resignation, they only serve the rest of that term. Members elected to a full four-year term cannot be reelected. Board members get no extra pay but are repaid for real, necessary expenses they have while doing Board work.

Full Legal Text

Title 28, §621

Judiciary and Judicial Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The activities of the Center shall be supervised by a Board to be composed of—
(1)the Chief Justice of the United States, who shall be the permanent Chairman of the Board;
(2)two circuit judges, three district judges, one bankruptcy judge, and one magistrate judge, elected by vote of the members of the Judicial Conference of the United States, except that any circuit or district judge so elected may be either a judge in regular active service or a judge retired from regular active service under section 371(b) of this title but shall not be a member of the Judicial Conference of the United States; and
(3)the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, who shall be a permanent member of the Board.
(b)The term of office of each elected member of the Board shall be four years. A member elected to serve for an unexpired term arising by virtue of the death, disability, retirement pursuant to section 371(a) or section 372(a) of this title, or resignation of a member shall be elected only for such unexpired term.
(c)No member elected for a four-year term shall be eligible for reelection to the Board.
(d)Members of the Board shall serve without additional compensation, but shall be reimbursed for actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1996—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 104–317, § 601(b)(1), amended par. (2) generally. Prior to amendment, par. (2) read as follows: “two active judges of the courts of appeals of the United States, three active judges of the district courts of the United States, one active judge of the bankruptcy courts of the United States elected by vote of the members of the Judicial Conference of the United States: Provided, however, That the judges so elected shall not be members of the Judicial Conference of the United States; and”. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 104–317, § 601(b)(2), substituted “retirement pursuant to section 371(a) or section 372(a) of this title,” for “retirement,”. 1978—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 95–598, § 228, inserted reference to one active judge of the bankruptcy courts of the United States. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 95–598, § 229, struck out provisions requiring that section 629 of this title govern the terms of office of the first members elected to the Board.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1978 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 95–598 effective Oct. 1, 1979, see section 402(c) of Pub. L. 95–598, set out as an

Effective Date

note preceding section 101 of Title 11, Bankruptcy.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

28 U.S.C. § 621

Title 28Judiciary and Judicial Procedure

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73