Claims extracted
22
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
0%
0 of 22 hedged
("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
67/100
Reason's corrections and
hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
For years, members of Congress and advocates of open government have been urging the federal court system to eliminate fees for its electronic records.
asserted
members → urge → records
In June, the federal judiciary took a look at the problem—and decided to hike the fees.
asserted
judiciary → take → fees
The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts announced that it was temporarily raising the search and download fees for its Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) database.
asserted
it → announce → database
Temporary fees tend to be like "temporary" emergency measures, but the judiciary says the extra revenue will cover the cost of completing a long-awaited modernization of the clunky and frustrating system, which it estimates will require $700 million to $800 million over six years.
asserted
it → tend → years
That project, which was spurred by two serious data breaches, is welcome news to the many lawyers, reporters, and researchers who rely on PACER to follow federal cases.
asserted
who → spur → cases
But it ignores a central problem: The court system overcharged PACER users for years while letting its database deteriorate.
asserted
database → ignore → years
Under the E-Government Act of 2002, the federal judiciary is supposed to collect only enough revenue from PACER users to cover the costs of maintaining the database.
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judiciary → suppose → database
But for years, PACER raked in about $145 million annually while incurring about $3 million a year in operating costs.
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PACER → rake → costs
PACER currently charges 10 cents per page for court records and searches.
asserted
PACER → charge → records
There is a $3 cap on large documents, and users pay nothing if their bill is less than $15 per quarter.
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bill → be → quarter
Most casual users pay nothing, but costs can quickly add up for news organizations, researchers, and legal professionals.
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costs → pay → organizations
Even the Justice Department pays to search PACER, to the tune of about $5 million a year.
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Department → pay → million
That's right: The government shuffles money between branches so government employees can look at court records that the government already owns.
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government → shuffle → that
"Distribution of documents on the internet at costs that resemble 1970s copyshop fees is ridiculous in today's day and age," Carl Malamud, a prominent public domain advocate, told me in 2019.
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Malamud → resemble → 2019
The situation also strikes many legislators as ridiculous.
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situation → strike → legislators
In 2020, the House passed the Open Courts Act, which would eliminate PACER's paywall.
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which → pass → paywall
The bill failed to pass the Senate, but Sens. Ron Wyden (D–Ore.) and John Kennedy (R–La.) reintroduced it this year.
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Wyden → fail → it
"Americans should not have to sell plasma or wrestle with clunky government websites just to read public court records," Kennedy said in a press release.
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Kennedy → have → release
"PACER is old, very expensive and extremely burdensome to use.
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PACER → use → ?
The Open Courts Act would drag this outdated system into the 21st century, protect court records from hackers and give taxpayers a better deal.
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Act → drag → deal
Government services ought to serve the American people—not make them want to put their head through a wall."
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them → serve → wall
This article originally appeared in print under the headline "Feds Hike Fees for Court Records."
asserted
Feds → appear → Records
The Aporia
