# 116-hr-8235: Open Courts Act of 2020

116-hr-8235, Open Courts Act of 2020, is a 116th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Johnson, Henry C. "Hank" [D-GA-4] (D-GA); status Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (as of 2025-11-18).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-8235
- As of: 2025-11-18
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 116-hr-8235
- Congress: 116
- Title: Open Courts Act of 2020
- Status: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
- Introduced: 2020-09-14
- Sponsor: Rep. Johnson, Henry C. "Hank" [D-GA-4] (D-GA)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Law
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2025-11-18

## Summary

Open Courts Act of 2020 This bill requires the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to establish a single electronic system for all public court records that is publicly accessible for free. Under the existing Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system, users are charged fees for accessing court documents. To fund the development of the new consolidated system, the Judicial Conference must temporarily establish a schedule of additional fees for persons that are higher-volume users of PACER. To fund the operations of the new system, the Judicial Conference shall collect an annual fee from the Department of Justice based on the amount of PACER fees paid by the department in 2018. The Judicial Conference may also establish reasonable filing fees based on specified factors, including the extent of a person's use and the interests of justice.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Rep. Collins, Doug [R-GA-9] (R-GA), 2020-09-14T00:00:00.000Z

## Related bills

- 116-hr-7088: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 111 James Street in Reidsville, Georgia, as the "Senator Jack Hill Post Office Buildin…
- 116-hr-6813: Promoting Alzheimer’s Awareness to Prevent Elder Abuse Act
- 116-hr-6196: TM Act of 2020
- 116-hr-6058: SHOP SAFE Act of 2020
- 116-hr-5472: Jimmy Carter National Historical Park Redesignation Act
- 116-hr-4305: PAWS for Veterans Therapy Act

## Sources
- [116-hr-8235 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/8235)

## Related
- [116-hr-7088: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 111 Ja…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-7088)
- [116-hr-6813: Promoting Alzheimer’s Awareness to Prevent Elder Abuse Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-6813)
- [116-hr-6196: TM Act of 2020](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-6196)
- [116-hr-6058: SHOP SAFE Act of 2020](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-6058)
- [116-hr-5472: Jimmy Carter National Historical Park Redesignation Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-5472)
- [116-hr-4305: PAWS for Veterans Therapy Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-4305)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-8235 (as of 2025-11-18).