Supreme Court Justices Kagan and Barrett testify before Congress seeking security funding amid surge in threats

Jul 14, 2026

Supreme Court Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett testified before a House appropriations subcommittee on July 14, 2026, marking a rare congressional appearance to request a 10% budget increase to $228.4 million. The justices cited a projected 38% surge in threats against the court this year. Justice Barrett shared personal accounts of wearing a bulletproof vest and experiencing a recent swatting incident. Lawmakers also pressed the justices on ethics enforcement and emergency docket transparency.

Supreme Court security funding request

▪The U.S. Supreme Court requested $228.4 million for fiscal year 2027, representing a nearly 10% increase from the $207.8 million appropriated for fiscal year 2026.
▪The Supreme Court's budget request includes $6 million for a planned structure to conduct security screening before visitors enter the Supreme Court building.
▪The federal judiciary requested nearly $921 million overall for security, which includes a $29 million increase compared to the previous year for frontline security forces at federal courthouses.

Threats against justices

▪Justice Amy Coney Barrett was targeted by a fraudulent "swatting" call at her home in May 2026, where local police responded to a false report of gunshots.
▪According to the U.S. Marshals Service, 276 federal judges were targeted by threats in 2026 as of July 1, 2026, compared to nearly 400 judges in 2025.
▪The Supreme Court Police Department expects a 38% annual increase in threats in 2026, following a 25% increase in threats in 2025.

Ethics code enforcement mechanism

▪Justice Elena Kagan stated she supports a Supreme Court code of ethics that includes an enforcement mechanism, suggesting it should be managed from within the judiciary.
▪Justice Amy Coney Barrett expressed uncertainty regarding an ethics enforcement mechanism, citing the complexity of selecting a panel to oversee ethical questions about the justices.

Emergency docket criticism

▪Justice Elena Kagan acknowledged past issues with the emergency docket where the Supreme Court provided so little explanation that lower courts struggled to interpret the orders.
▪Representative Glenn Ivey criticized the Supreme Court's emergency docket rulings for causing irreparable harm to federal employees and grant recipients without providing oral arguments or written opinions.

Supreme Court Police expansion

▪The Supreme Court requested an increase of nearly $15 million to expand the Supreme Court Police Department's protective activities for the justices and their families.
▪Justice Elena Kagan advocated for transitioning residential security from the U.S. Marshals Service to a stable, full-time Supreme Court Police force.