WASHINGTON – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today introduced the Empowering Immigration Courts Act to give immigration judges a tool to stop litigants from drawing out proceedings unnecessarily, which further burdens the immigration system and rewards illegal immigration.

Specifically, the legislation would give immigration judges the same contempt authority federal judges have to punish by fine litigants who misbehave or flout court orders.

“Under President Biden’s watch, America has seen 9 million migrants attempt to cross the southern border. The current court structure can’t process this level of illegal immigration effectively. My bill would give immigration judges a critical tool to help them better manage their overwhelmed dockets and cut down on the backlog of immigration cases,” said Kennedy.

Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) introduced the bill in the House of Representatives. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) cosponsored the act.

“Illegal aliens routinely skip their court date and flout our immigration laws. I am proud to cosponsor Senator Kennedy’s bill that helps fix this problem by giving immigration courts the same contempt power as federal district courts. This will allow immigration judges to hold illegal aliens who skip their court dates in contempt and punish them with fines. I call on the Senate to pass this bill that takes a step in the right direction and helps restore order to the immigration court system,” said Cruz.

“As our immigration system continues to be overrun and mismanaged, there is a simple problem Congress can solve today: contempt authority for immigration judges. Presently, these judges do not have the same authority as all other federal judges to discipline trial lawyers for misbehavior. This legislation will give much-needed authority to our immigration judges so they can ensure order in their courtrooms and better manage their dockets,” said Blackburn. 

Background: 

• In 1996, Congress passed a law authorizing the attorney general to issue regulations empowering immigration judges to sanction litigants who misbehave or violate court orders. However, in the nearly three decades since Congress passed the law, no attorney general has issued such regulations. 

• In March 2021, Kennedy first introduced the Empowering Immigration Courts Act so that immigration judges could fine those found to be in contempt of court.

Full text of the Empowering Immigration Courts Act is available here.