Trump administration eyes canceling leases for space used by US judiciary

Reuters

14-02-2025

Feb 14 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk 's push to radically overhaul the federal government is now reaching the U.S. court system with a demand that the judiciary justify why the administration should not cancel leases for space it utilizes at 160 locations nationally.
The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, the federal judiciary's administrative arm, in an internal memo, opens new tab issued on Thursday said it received the lease inquiry from the U.S. General Services Administration, which manages federal property for various parts of the government including the courts.
Those potential lease cancellations were one of a number of issues the memo sought to address arising from what it described as the "fast pace" and "highly dynamic situation" presented by executive branch agencies seeking to carry out Trump's agenda.
The leases are for spaces at about 160 locations that are utilized by courts and federal public defender offices, which are part of the judiciary and provide lawyers for indigent criminal defendants, according to the memo.
Paul Gamble, the Administrative Office's chief of the facilities and security office, in the memo said the judiciary "intends to work with GSA to ensure that judiciary operations in each of these locations can continue undisturbed."
The Administrative Office declined to comment. The GSA had no immediate comment. The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
The possibility of lease cancellations emerged as Trump and his allies have sharply attacked judges who they say have stymied the Republican president's immigration and cost-cutting agenda, with Musk calling for impeachments and Vice President J.D. Vance saying judges "aren't allowed to control the executive's legitimate power."
Such comments have fueled concerns about whether the Trump administration would abide by court rulings and whether the country is headed to a constitutional crisis.
'UNNECESSARY CHAOS'
The judiciary is one of three branches of the federal government and operates independently of the executive branch Trump leads. But it relies on some services and functions that are maintained by arms of executive branch, including GSA.
GSA's acting director is tech entrepreneur Stephen Ehikian, who in a notice to agencies last week said the agency was seeking to accelerate disposing of unused and under-utilized space to "save taxpayers billions and improve operational efficiency."
But Marin Levy, a professor at Duke University School of Law who studies the federal courts, called it "shocking" that the administration sought to cancel leases used by the judiciary too, saying the move created "unnecessary chaos."
"The judiciary is an independent branch of government," she said in an email. "And Congress, not the executive, provides funding for the judiciary's facilities."
In Thursday's memo, Gamble said the new administration's efforts to cut spending had impacted other aspects of the judiciary such as contracts for court projects that were impacted by a GSA-imposed freeze on contracting. The memo did not provide further details on which specific contracts were affected.
Gamble advised courts to also turn away government agencies or individual executive branch employees who might have contacted them looking for space to work in after Trump curtailed remote work arrangements and required federal workers to return to the office five days a week.
"Courthouses and other judiciary facilities are for judiciary operations," Gamble wrote.
The U.S. Marshals Service, which provides security for courthouses and judges, has been directed by Trump's Justice Department to support Trump's immigration crackdown.
But Gamble said the agency has assured the Administrative Office that the security of the judiciary remains its "top priority and will be staffed accordingly."