GAO warns 2021 courthouse design guide could raise building size and costs; Judiciary and GSA say they will reassess

WASHINGTON — The Government Accountability Office told a House subcommittee that revisions to the U.S. Courts’ 2021 design guide are likely to increase the size and cost of future federal courthouses, potentially costing taxpayers tens of millions of dollars more per project.

"We identified 16 substantive changes and estimated that together, they would increase the size of future courthouses by 6% and their cost by 12% on average," Director Maroney of the Government Accountability Office said in testimony to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management. Maroney told the committee that modeling of seven recent projects showed an estimated $143,000,000 increase in construction costs if the updated standards were applied.

The GAO report, requested by the subcommittee after long-standing concerns about overbuilt federal courthouses, recommended that the judiciary reassess several circulation and space standards in consultation with the General Services Administration. "If the judiciary determines that the increase in circulation space isn't needed, then the federal government could avoid tens of millions of dollars in costs," Maroney said.

The Judiciary defended the 2021 guide as intended to address security and longevity. "We are not looking to build bigger, more elaborate courthouses. We are trying to build secure courthouses that will last," Judge Glenn Sotheby, chair of the Judicial Conference Committee on Space and Facilities, told the committee. Sotheby said the updated guide also incorporates courtroom-sharing policies and other measures intended to limit overall growth in the judiciary footprint.

GSA officials acknowledged the budgetary pressure and cited deferred maintenance across the federal portfolio. "Taxpayers shouldn't pay to keep the lights on when nobody's home," Michael Peters, Commissioner of the Public Buildings Service at the U.S. General Services Administration, said. Peters told lawmakers GSA is working to "rightsize" the federal real estate portfolio and said the agency has sold 19 properties, avoiding about $49,000,000 in deferred maintenance costs, and has initiated termination of nearly 600 underused leases with an estimated $298,000,000 in future savings.

Committee members pressed the panel on the balance between security-driven space needs and the judiciary's own role in defining requirements. Chairman Perry told witnesses it was appropriate for Congress to seek independent review: "When you're looking at your needs, you're going to know what you need, but you're also, you know, maybe go for a little more than perhaps an independent observer would think you would need." He also said the committee will continue oversight because previous GAO work found overbuilding: "In 2010, GAO found that courthouses were overbuilt by more than 3,000,000 square feet," he said.

Several members called for better data on courtroom and facility utilization to inform future decisions. Peters said GSA recently began receiving occupancy data that will inform prioritization. Judge Sotheby and other judiciary witnesses said courtroom sharing and an asset management program (AMP) are intended to target only the most urgent construction needs and to avoid growth in the judiciary footprint.

No formal legislative actions were taken at the hearing; the committee agreed by unanimous consent to include witnesses' written testimony in the record and to keep the record open for 15 days for additional submissions.

The GAO recommended that the judiciary and GSA collaborate to reassess the revised circulation standards. Both the judiciary and GSA told the subcommittee they will pursue further collaboration and that the judiciary will evaluate GAO's recommendations as part of ongoing program reviews. The committee signaled it expects additional data on courtroom utilization and cost implications before authorizing major new courthouse projects.