Courthouse Affordability and Space Efficiency Act of 2025

This bill aims to cut courthouse costs by making judges share courtrooms and by limiting new courthouse construction. It tells the General Services Administration (GSA) to enforce sharing among magistrate, bankruptcy, and senior district judges, and to avoid building new courthouses unless space is used efficiently and sharing rules are met.

Key points

• Who is affected: Federal courthouses managed by the GSA; magistrate, bankruptcy, senior district, and active district judges.
• What changes:
  • In buildings with 10+ active district judges, provide two courtrooms for every three active judges (but not fewer than nine total for active judges).
  • For groups of 3+ bankruptcy, senior district, or magistrate judges, provide one courtroom for every two judges.
  • No new courthouse may be built if it fails these sharing rules, and any added space must be matched by fully using or giving up older space in the same complex.
• When: The GSA must update the U.S. Courts Design Guide within 180 days to reflect these rules.