Sponsors (4)
The bill creates clearer, more predictable fee allocations, deposit rules, and temporary-judge continuity to stabilize bankruptcy administration, but does so by diverting fees to the Treasury and fixing per-case dollar allocations—trading short-term predictability and centralization for risks of underfunding over time, reduced judicial turnover, and transitional fairness/administrative burdens.
Trustees, claimants, and bankruptcy administrators get clearer, fixed per-case trustee compensation and fee allocations, improving predictability in case administration and pay distributions.
United States Courts and court administrators get centralized, updated deposit and fee rules (textual clarifications and a 10-year reference), improving administrative consistency and reducing legal/operational ambiguity.
The Treasury (federal budget) receives predictable revenue ($5.4M per year for FY2026–2031), giving short-term certainty for federal program receipts.
Taxpayers and bankruptcy filers may effectively pay higher costs because a portion of collected fees is diverted to the Treasury (including $5.4M/yr), reducing funds available for court operations or trustee programs.
Fixed per-case dollar allocations risk becoming outdated with inflation and could underfund the U.S. Trustee System Fund over time, forcing future filing-fee increases or additional appropriations.
Striking §330(e) and altering compensation claims creates uncertainty for professionals (attorneys, trustees) and creditors who rely on additional compensation claims, potentially affecting recoveries and incentives.
Based on analysis of 6 sections of legislative text.
Raises trustee pay in many chapter 7 cases, fixes per-case fee splits to fund courts and the U.S. Trustee System, extends select temporary judgeships to 10 years, and adjusts certain fee deposits.
Increases fixed compensation for many chapter 7 trustees, reallocates how bankruptcy filing and quarterly fees are divided among court-related funds and the United States Trustee System, extends selected temporary bankruptcy judges’ terms from 5 to 10 years, and adjusts several fee deposit rules and effective dates. The changes aim to boost trustee pay, stabilize funding for the trustee program and courts, and shift specific fee amounts among Treasury and trustee-system accounts. The bill also changes timed deposits from certain quarterly fees (including a $5.4 million annual transfer to the general Treasury fund for 2026–2031) and contains a drafting anomaly in one amendment that could create ambiguity in the statute unless corrected. Most provisions take effect on the first day of the calendar quarter after enactment, with specified exceptions for trustee-compensation and fee rules tied to later start dates in the statute.
Introduced December 10, 2025 by Christopher A. Coons · Last progress February 6, 2026