Sen. Chuck Grassley, ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, and Sen. Jeff Sessions, ranking member of the Budget Committee, have been scrutinizing the expense of the Ninth Judicial Circuit's upcoming conference in Hawaii. The Ninth Circuit announced that it will cancel next year's conference. Grassley and Sessions are seeking cost containment for the Hawaii conference this year, as well as for future conferences. Grassley made the following comment.
"After weeks of scrutiny, it's good to see a response at last to criticism of expensive conferences. However, while an encouraging sign, cancelling next year's conference does not necessarily signal lasting change. This year's conference is likely to be expensive, and future events could be expensive, as well. I'm looking for long-term spending reductions and restraint on conference expenditures."
The Ninth Circuit's 2013 conference cancellation announcement is available here.
Grassley and Sessions sent a second letter to the Ninth Circuit on Friday. That letter is available here.
