# 119-s-5033: Judicial FOIA Expansion Act

119-s-5033, Judicial FOIA Expansion Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Schiff, Adam B. [D-CA] (D-CA); status introduced (as of 2026-08-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5033
- As of: 2026-08-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-5033
- Congress: 119
- Title: Judicial FOIA Expansion Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-07-20
- Sponsor: Sen. Schiff, Adam B. [D-CA] (D-CA)
- Cosponsors: 3
- Policy area: Law
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-08-11

## Summary

**Extend FOIA and the Privacy Act to many federal courts**. It would list specific judicial records for public release and fund an office to help courts meet the new disclosure rules. - Members of the public and reporters would gain access to records like judge disciplinary files, complaints and investigations, Federal Judicial Conference calendars and minutes, completed jury-selection forms, Federal Judicial Center research, and annual reports to Congress. - Judges and court staff would face disclosure of complaints, investigations, and performance reports while internal deliberations of disciplinary hearings and materials tied to ongoing cases remain protected. - Courts would need to publish records in machine-readable form, the Attorney General would represent courts in FOIA and Privacy Act claims, and the bill would authorize $10 million for fiscal year 2027 to create an office in the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to implement the changes. *Would authorize $10 million for fiscal year 2027 to implement these changes, increasing federal spending by $10 million.*

## Cosponsors (3)

- Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT] (D-CT), 2026-07-20T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR] (D-OR), 2026-07-20T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Kim, Andy [D-NJ] (D-NJ), 2026-08-03T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Funding to create courts' FOIA office: benefit, low. This bill would authorize $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2027 to help courts meet the FOIA and Privacy Act requirements. The funds would support creating an office inside the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to implement the new rules. This is an authorization; Congress would still need to app…
- More public access to court records: mixed, medium. This bill would make many federal courts subject to FOIA and the Privacy Act. It would add the Supreme Court, courts of appeals, and district courts. It would also add the Administrative Office, the Federal Judicial Center, the U.S. Sentencing Commission, federal defender organizations, and courtho…
- Attorney General defends courts in FOIA cases: mixed, low. This bill would require the Attorney General to represent a court in any FOIA or Privacy Act claim. People suing a court under these statutes would generally face the Department of Justice as the court's legal representative. This is a procedural change about who defends courts in this litigation.

## Related bills

- 119-s-2838: Protecting Our Democracy Act
- 119-s-2819: Head Start for America's Children Act
- 119-s-4949: Water Resources Development Act of 2026
- 119-s-5283: Momnibus Act
- 119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026
- 119-s-2823: FAMILY Act

## Sources
- [119-s-5033 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5033)

## Related
- [119-s-2838: Protecting Our Democracy Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2838)
- [119-s-2819: Head Start for America's Children Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2819)
- [119-s-4949: Water Resources Development Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4949)
- [119-s-5283: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5283)
- [119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3990)
- [119-s-2823: FAMILY Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2823)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5033 (as of 2026-08-11).