Monitor Accountability Act

Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

May 18, 2026

The Monitor Accountability Act requires the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to establish conditions for appointing monitors—independent officials who oversee corrective reforms in civil settlement agreements and consent decrees involving state and local governmental entities. The bill mandates public notice and comment opportunities before monitor appointments, restricts individuals to one monitor appointment at a time, establishes five-year term limits for monitors, and requires public disclosure of monitor fees and services. The bill caps monitor fees and explicitly permits the use of pro bono services.

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Monitor Accountability Act This bill requires the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to establish conditions on the appointment of monitors to oversee state and local governmental entities. A monitor is an independent official appointed to oversee corrective reforms as part of a civil settlement agreement or consent decree, such as to remedy a pattern or practice of unconstitutional policing. Among the conditions, this bill requires notice and an opportunity for public comment prior to the appointment of a monitor, limits an individual to one monitor appointment at a time, sets a five-year term limit for monitors, and requires a public accounting of the fees charged and services provided by the monitor. It also caps fees and explicitly authorizes the use of pro bono services. In 2021, the Department of Justice began implementing a set of principles and specific recommendations regarding the use of monitors in civil settlement agreements and consent decrees involving state and local governmental entities, including recommendations relating to term limits, capping fees, and public accountability.