Judiciary Committee Holds Markup to Address Supreme Court Ethical Code
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary will today consider the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act of 2023. The markup comes after reports of undisclosed gifts and surveys showing decreased public confidence in the Court. Craig Holman, a government ethics expert with Public Citizen, issued the following statement:
“The Supreme Court is the only federal court not bound by a code of ethics. Given the increasing politicization of the nomination process and recurring instances of large unreported gifts to individual justices, it is imperative to take steps to restore public respect for the Supreme Court.
“Transparency and accountability must be a centerpiece of a functioning judiciary, and leadership begins from the top. The Court, and the judiciary as a whole, historically have been regarded as trustworthy and above politics. Yet, the public’s confidence has waned, and the time has come for a code of conduct for the nation’s highest court.“
In addition to the statement, Public Citizen strongly supported the passage of the bill in a letter to Senator Richard Durbin, who chairs the committee, and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. Read the letter here.
# # #