JOINT RESOLUTIONS

combined; and that the highest levels of education and median
income in the State are in the proposed Southern Division; and

WHEREAS, 1 Bankruptcy Court Judge, 1 U.S. Magistrate,
one-third of the Probation Office, a Deputy Clerk in charge, 2
pre-trial officers, and 1 assistant U.S. Attorney are already
located within the proposed Southern Division; and

WHEREAS, Caseload statistics from the Administrative Office
of the U.S. Courts show that 40% of the bankruptcy cases, 20% of
the civil litigation, and 35% of the criminal litigation in the
Federal District Court for the District of Maryland arise in the
proposed Southern District Division; and

WHEREAS, The current location of the Federal District Court
in Baltimore makes it difficult for witnesses, parties, and
attorneys from Montgomery, Prince George's, Calvert, Charles, and
St. Mary's Counties to economically and conveniently litigate
their disputes; and

WHEREAS, Attorneys and clients in these counties do not make
use of the Federal Court to the same extent as the citizens of
the metropolitan Baltimore area; and

WHEREAS, Maryland is the only State within the Fourth
Circuit (which includes Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South
Carolina, and West Virginia) that does not have multiple
districts or divisions, even though the population of Maryland
now exceeds that of several multidistrict states in the Fourth
Circuit at the time they acquired multiple districts; and

WHEREAS, The initial first-year cost of creating the court
would be $427,500 and the annual recurring cost would be
$247,300, or less than 2% of the Federal District Court's
operating and expense budget; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, That the
General Assembly urges the Congress of the United States to
create a new division of the United States District Court for the
district of Maryland, to be known as the "Southern Division" and
to comprise the counties of Calvert, Charles, Montgomery, Prince
George's and St. Mary's; and be it further

RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution be forwarded by the
Department of Legislative Reference to the Honorable James
Wright, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives,
United States House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. 20515,
and to the Maryland Congressional Delegation: Senators Paul S.
Sarbanes and Barbara A. Mikulski, Senate Office Building,
Washington, D.C. 20510; and Representatives Royden P. Dyson,
Helen Delich Bentley, Benjamin L. Cardin, C. Thomas McMillen,
Steny H. Hoyer, Beverly B. Byron, Kweisi Mfume, and Constance A.
Morella, House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515.

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