Supreme Court Justices Request Additional Security Funding in 2027 Budget Proposal

Justices Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett testified before a House appropriations subcommittee on July 14 and requested an additional $14.6 million for security in the Supreme Court's 2027 budget proposal. The Supreme Court’s total budget request for fiscal year 2027 is $228 million.

The security portion would add six agents to each justice’s detail, allocate $2 million for an off-site residential security post, and fund more Supreme Court police officers.

Each justice currently has between four and eight security personnel assigned. Justice Amy Coney Barrett said the threat level is really high and threats have come very close. She recalled wearing a bulletproof vest home several years ago and explaining it to her then-12-year-old son.

Justice Elena Kagan said threats rose after the 2022 leak of a draft opinion in the case that overturned Roe v. Wade and have continued to increase. The U.S. Marshals Service recorded 564 threats against federal judges in the fiscal year ending September 2025.

Another $18 million of the overall budget request is designated for maintenance of the Supreme Court building and grounds. The July 14 hearing marked the first time Supreme Court justices have testified before Congress since 2019. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. did not attend.