# 119-s-5347: Circuit Court of Appeals Reorganization Act of 2026

119-s-5347, Circuit Court of Appeals Reorganization Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Lee, Mike [R-UT] (R-UT); status introduced (as of 2026-08-20).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5347
- As of: 2026-08-20
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-5347
- Congress: 119
- Title: Circuit Court of Appeals Reorganization Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-08-06
- Sponsor: Sen. Lee, Mike [R-UT] (R-UT)
- Cosponsors: 6
- Policy area: Law
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-08-20

## Summary

**Rewrites which states belong to the Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth U.S. Courts of Appeals to reshape where appeals are heard.** The bill would also change how many active circuit judges each court has, where courts sit, and how existing cases and precedents move between circuits. - People and lawyers in affected states would file appeals in different circuits because state assignments change. The bill shifts states like Alaska, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming into a new Eighth and moves Arizona and Nevada into a new Tenth, while redefining the Ninth's composition. - Circuit judges would be reassigned by their official station to the new circuits and keep their original seniority. The bill sets authorized active judges at 15 for the Eighth, 21 for the Ninth, and 16 for the Tenth. - Court operations would relocate to specified cities. The Eighth would hold sessions in St. Louis, Kansas City, Rapid City, and St. Paul. The Tenth would sit in Denver, Oklahoma City, Phoenix, and Salt Lake City. - Facility and transition details are set. Rapid City need not host sessions until adequate facilities exist and the General Services Administration must provide a report, building plan, and funding request within 1 year. The bill also defines how pending appeals and precedents transfer between the old and new circuits.

## Cosponsors (6)

- Sen. Barrasso, John [R-WY] (R-WY), 2026-08-06T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Crapo, Mike [R-ID] (R-ID), 2026-08-06T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Cruz, Ted [R-TX] (R-TX), 2026-08-06T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Daines, Steve [R-MT] (R-MT), 2026-08-06T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Risch, James E. [R-ID] (R-ID), 2026-08-06T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Sheehy, Tim [R-MT] (R-MT), 2026-08-06T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- New federal appeals circuit map: mixed, high. If enacted, the bill would redraw which states belong to three federal Courts of Appeals. The new Eighth would include Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. The new Ninth would include California, Guam, Hawaii, the Northern M…
- Which appeals precedents apply: mixed, high. If enacted, the bill would change which older circuit decisions count as binding law in some states. Former Ninth Circuit precedent would stop controlling in Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, Montana, and Nevada. Former Tenth precedent would stop controlling in Wyoming. Former Eighth precedent would control…
- Who becomes your appeals judge: mixed, high. If enacted, current circuit judges would be reassigned to a new Eighth, Ninth, or Tenth Circuit based on their official station the day before enactment. Judges with stations in listed states would move to the matching new circuit. The bill would set the number of active circuit judges: Eighth 15,…
- Courthouse sites, Rapid City plan: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would name cities where the circuits may hold sessions, for example St. Louis, Kansas City, Rapid City, and St. Paul for the Eighth, and Denver, Oklahoma City, Phoenix, and Salt Lake City for the Tenth. The new Eighth would not be required to hold sessions at Rapid City until a…

## Related bills

- 119-s-1071: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026
- 119-s-3752: SAVE America Act
- 119-s-587: Death Tax Repeal Act of 2025
- 119-s-186: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2025
- 119-s-6: Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act
- 119-s-9: Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-s-5347 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5347)

## Related
- [119-s-1071: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1071)
- [119-s-3752: SAVE America Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3752)
- [119-s-587: Death Tax Repeal Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-587)
- [119-s-186: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-186)
- [119-s-6: Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-6)
- [119-s-9: Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-9)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5347 (as of 2026-08-20).