{"id":2345975,"date":"2024-09-25T18:30:00","date_gmt":"2024-09-25T22:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/federal-judges-no-longer-required-to-disclose-dining-and-lodging-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-09-25T18:33:08","modified_gmt":"2024-09-25T22:33:08","slug":"federal-judges-no-longer-required-to-disclose-dining-and-lodging-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/federal-judges-no-longer-required-to-disclose-dining-and-lodging-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal judges no longer required to disclose dining and lodging &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffederal-judges-no-longer-required-to-disclose-dining-and-lodging-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2345975&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A \u200drecent\u200b rule change by the U.S. Judicial Conference has removed the requirement for Supreme Court justices \u200cand federal judges to publicly disclose instances of dining or lodging at personal residences. This adjustment, announced by the Committee on\u2064 Financial Disclosure, \u2064allows judges to avoid reporting such stays, even if the residence is owned by a\u200c business\u2062 entity. The\u200c new rule \u200dmodifies a 2023 regulation\u2063 aimed at increasing transparency regarding gifts, trips, and meals. <\/p>\n<p>The move comes during heightened scrutiny of judicial ethics, particularly following criticisms of Justice Clarence\u200c Thomas concerning his \u200cvacations at\u2062 properties owned by a friend. Under the revised rules, only\u2062 transportation gifts require disclosure, while stays \u2063at friends&#8217;\u2064 homes are\u2063 exempt. Critics have condemned \u200cthe change, suggesting it \u200dbenefits judges\u2064 like Thomas, with some referring to it as the\u200d &#8220;Clarence\u200b Thomas exemption.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>The rule\u200d is seen as an effort to balance\u2063 transparency and privacy concerns, although\u2064 it\u2064 has faced backlash from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mississippi-becomes-seventh-state-to-outlaw-sex-change-surgeries-for-minors\/\" title=\"Mississippi Becomes Seventh State To Outlaw Sex Change Surgeries for Minors\">left-leaning advocates<\/a> for \u200denhanced judicial ethics. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse pointed out that the \u2063revisions\u200c are \u200ba \u2062response to concerns he\u2062 has raised, and he continues to push \u2063for stronger ethics legislation. Vice President Kamala Harris has also expressed interest in eliminating the Senate \u200dfilibuster to facilitate the passage\u200c of more\u2064 radical reforms related to judicial \u200baccountability.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Federal judges no longer required to disclose dining and lodging thanks to rule change<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1768642\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Supreme Court<\/a> justices and federal judges will not be required to file public disclosure records when they eat or stay at someone else&rsquo;s personal residence, according to a recent rule revision from the federal judiciary&rsquo;s policymaking arm.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The U.S. Judicial Conference&rsquo;s Committee on Financial Disclosure announced the newly revised <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/ethics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>ethics<\/a> rule Monday. It alters certain disclosure requirements for Supreme Court justices and federal judges, allowing them to avoid reporting stays or meals at personal residences even if the property is owned by a business entity. The updated rule amends a 2023 regulation that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/124705\/new-supreme-court-rules-make-it-much-harder-for-justices-to-avoid-reporting-gifts\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>made it more difficult to avoid reporting<\/a> gifts, meals, and trips.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uscourts.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/guide-vol02d.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>revision<\/a> this week comes amid <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3158100\/durbin-pressed-roberts-enact-binding-supreme-court-ethics-code\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>partisan scrutiny<\/a> of the judiciary&rsquo;s ethics practices, provoked in part by Democrats dissatisfied with the 6-3 Republican-appointed majority on the Supreme Court. Many of these ethical gripes have resulted in critics targeting Justice <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/clarence-thomas\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Clarence Thomas<\/a> over his vacations and stays at properties owned by his friend, Dallas-based real estate magnate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3044446\/senate-committee-drops-probe-harlan-crow\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Harlan Crow<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Associate Justice Clarence Thomas poses for a photo on Oct. 7, 2022, at the Supreme Court building in Washington. (AP Photo\/J. Scott Applewhite)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Under the new rules, judges, including members of the high court, will not be required to disclose whether they stayed or dined at a friend&rsquo;s home or property. However, transportation gifts, such as travel aboard a private aircraft, will likely still need disclosure.<\/p>\n<p>Jonathan Adler, a professor at Case Western Reserve University Law School, told the <em>Washington Examiner <\/em>the Judicial Conference&rsquo;s revision brings the standards &ldquo;more in line with the way the rule had traditionally been applied and understood.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Notably, the rule change comes just days after an Alaskan man with a record of donations to Democratic-leaning groups sent hundreds of violent threats to members of the Supreme Court, according to a criminal affidavit.<\/p>\n<p>The change &ldquo;may also be a reaction to concerns about the need to balance privacy concerns with transparency concerns,&rdquo; Adler noted.<\/p>\n<p>Left-leaning critics were quick to judge the Judicial Conference for its sudden adjustment of the disclosure rules.<\/p>\n<p>Donald Sherman, chief counsel for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a group that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/2710708\/transparency-group-behind-trump-ballot-removal-effort-has-long-relied-on-left-wing-dark-money\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>tried to remove<\/a> former President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Donald Trump<\/a> from the 2024 ballot, said the Judicial Conference &ldquo;might as well call it the Clarence Thomas exemption.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Judicial ethics have also been a major discussion point since last year&rsquo;s announcement of a formal code of conduct for justices. However, the code, while groundbreaking, lacked any real enforcement mechanisms, leaving mostly Democratic critics dissatisfied by the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-overturns-chevron-doctrine-upends-administrative-state\/\" title=\"SCOTUS Overturns Chevron Doctrine, Upends Administrative State\">high court&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s conservative bend unhappy with the update.<\/p>\n<p>The updated disclosure rules aim to &ldquo;clarify&rdquo; when gifts and hospitality need to be reported. The new regulations specify that judges do not need to disclose stays at personal residences owned by entities, as long as those properties are not commercially rented out.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;For gift reporting only, any food, lodging, or entertainment received as &lsquo;personal hospitality of any individual&rsquo; (as defined in Guide, Vol. 2D, &sect; 170) need not be reported,&rdquo; according to the updated section labeled &ldquo;Exclusions.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a Democratic lawmaker who has been vocal about tightening judicial ethics, was one of the key figures urging the 2023 reforms.<\/p>\n<p>Whitehouse boasted Tuesday in a <a href=\"https:\/\/mobile.x.com\/SenWhitehouse\/status\/1838645676420534668\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>post<\/a> on X that the Judicial Conference &ldquo;has moved to clean up messes I have pointed out&rdquo; on at least two occasions. But now, the only hope he has to reinstate the stricter rules is to pass his long-touted Supreme Court Ethics and Transparency Act, which would allow members of the public to file complaints against justices and create a panel of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/government-unions-have-been-stealing-money-for-years-now-scotus-has-the-chance-to-intervene\/\" title=\"Government Unions Have Been Stealing Money For Years \u2014 Now, SCOTUS Has The Chance To Intervene\">lower court judges<\/a> with subpoena powers to investigate.<\/p>\n<p>Vice President Kamala Harris said this week that she was open to eliminating the 60-vote filibuster in the Senate, a move that could allow for the easy passage of more radical policies, such as creating enforceable ethics codes on the Supreme Court or even forcing the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sen-dianne-feinstein-dies-at-90-2\/\" title=\"Sen. Dianne Feinstein, 90, passes away.\">longest-serving members<\/a> into retirement. Thomas is the most senior of the nine justices.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Thomas previously defended his actions, claiming he had been advised that stays at properties such as Crow&rsquo;s Camp Topridge in New York did not need to be disclosed, as they fell under the personal hospitality exemption. Despite public pressure, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/3076592\/aoc-impeachment-articles-supreme-court-justices-thomas-alito\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>impeachment threats<\/a> from progressive lawmakers such as Rep. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/alexandria-ocasio-cortez\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez<\/a> (D-NY), Thomas and the Supreme Court have otherwise largely remained silent on these ethical concerns.<\/p>\n<p>With the latest revisions, the debate over the ethical standards of the U.S. judiciary is likely to endure as Election Day approaches, as Democrats have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3057984\/inside-campaign-to-smear-supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>sought to tie their distaste<\/a> for the high court&rsquo;s rulings into their 2024 campaign strategy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1768642\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1768642\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Federal judges no longer need to disclose dining and lodging<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2633,"featured_media":2345977,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/AP24184683176084-1-scaled-1024x683.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[41741,41740,41739,33211,32076],"class_list":["post-2345975","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-dining-and-lodging","tag-disclosure-rules","tag-federal-judges","tag-legal-news","tag-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/AP24184683176084-1-scaled-1024x683.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2345975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2633"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2345975"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2345975\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2345977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2345975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2345975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2345975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}