Comings and goings: Federal court nominations and congressional retirements

20 additional federal court nominations + Congressional retirements: A mass exodus? + Fentanyl added to list of drugs eligible for felony charges in OK Next on the docket, 20 additional federal court nominations President Trump announced plans to nominate 20 additional people to federal court seats. Of the 20 new nominees, three will be nominated to U.S. Courts of Appeal, 16 will be nominated to U.S. District Courts, and one will be nominated to the U.S. Tax Court. The newest wave of nominees is the largest yet announced, according to the Courthouse News Service. Not including the 20 new nominations, there are 57 pending federal court nominees. There are 152 current vacancies and 30 announced future vacancies on federal courts covered in Ballotpedia's Federal Vacancy Count. [Learn more]( [Forward This](mailto:?&cc=info@Ballotpedia.org&subject=Check out this info I found from Ballotpedia&body= [blank][Tweet This]( [blank][blank][Send to Facebook]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [blank] Oklahoma governor signs bill adding fentanyl to list of drugs eligible for felony trafficking charge Republican Gov. Mary Fallin signed Senate Bill 1078, which adds fentanyl to the list of drugs eligible for a felony charge. Other eligible drugs include but are not limited to marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and oxycodone. Under the bill, possession of "one gram or more of a mixture containing fentanyl or carfentanil, or any fentanyl analogs or derivative" is punishable by a $100,000 to $500,000 fine. The Oklahoma State Senate approved SB 1078 on March 6 by a 42-1 vote, and the Oklahoma House of Representatives unanimously passed the bill on April 2. The legislation was recommended by the Oklahoma Commission on Opioid Abuse, which was created by Attorney General Mike Hunter to help combat the opioid epidemic in Oklahoma. [Learn more→]( --------------------------------------------------------------- 2018 congressional retirements: A mass exodus? House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) announced that he would not seek re-election in 2018. In a press conference announcing his retirement, Ryan spoke about his desire to be in Wisconsin to spend time with his family. "I like to think I've done my part, my little part in history to set us on a better course," he said. Ryan was elected as Speaker of the House on October 29, 2015; he was elected at age 45 and is the youngest speaker to serve since 1869. He will retire after his 10th term in office. Ryan was not the only Republican in the chamber to announce his retirement. Shortly after Ryan’s announcement, Rep. Dennis Ross (R-FL) announced he would not seek re-election to a fifth term in office. Ross said he planned on returning to practicing law after his retirement. He represents Florida’s 15th district, which was rated either Solid Republican or Safe Republican by the three major race rating outlets. After his announcement, The Cook Political Report adjusted its race rating for the seat to Likely Republican. Ryan and Ross will be the 56th and 57th members of Congress not to seek re-election in 2018. This is the second-highest total since 1946, only topped by the 65 retirements in 1992. These two retirements make 38 retiring from public office (28 Republicans and 10 Democrats). Nineteen others (12 Republicans and seven Democrats) are running for either governor or U.S. Senate in 2018. [Learn more→]( --------------------------------------------------------------- How does this Supreme Court term compare? It's no secret that the U.S. Supreme Court takes very few of the cases it's offered each year. Of the 7,000 to 8,000 petitions made, the court typically agrees to hear fewer than 100. This term, the Supreme Court scheduled 69 cases. Although it agreed to hear an additional seven cases, those were moved to its docket for next year's term. Of the 69 cases scheduled, the court has heard 56. Last term, the court heard 71 cases. In terms of opinions, this year began as a historically slow term for the court. The court issued its first opinion of the term on November 8, 2017. The court issued its second opinion of the term on January 22, 2018. It was only the second time since the court’s [1868 term]( that the second opinion of the term was issued in January. The court has now issued opinions in 18 of the 56 cases it has already heard. But most of the statistics from this term are yet to come. As the court finishes up its argument schedule in April and begins the opinions sprint to the end of June, stay tuned for much more! 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