New York lawmakers packed up and left Albany this week without touching one of the judiciary's biggest pressure points: the chronic shortage of Supreme Court judges. Two separate plans that could have added dozens, and by some estimates hundreds, of new seats quietly stalled out as the session came to a close, leaving clogged dockets and long waits right where they were.
Session Closes, Expansion Plans Go Nowhere
The Uncap Justice Act, a proposed constitutional amendment that would scrap the one-justice-per-50,000-residents ceiling, never made it out of committee before adjournment, according to Queens Daily Eagle. The measure had already cleared both chambers in 2024, but under state rules it has to pass the Legislature in two consecutive sessions before voters even get a say, as outlined by the New York State Senate. That mix of procedural hoops and political resistance left expansion off the table for 2026.
Scaled-Back Population Fix Also Stalls
A more modest bill from Sen. Leroy Comrie and Assemblymember Jeffrey Dinowitz, which would have relaxed the cap to one justice per 30,000 residents, met the same fate and died in committee, Queens Daily Eagle reported. Dinowitz told the outlet he still "believes his bill is the best way forward" yet said he is open to any approach that boosts the number of Supreme Court judges.
The broader Uncap Justice proposal has also lost its original champions. Former Senate sponsor Brad Hoylman-Sigal left the chamber to become Manhattan borough president, and Assembly sponsor Alex Bores is now running for Congress in NY-12, which means both measures will need new standard-bearers next session (PoliticsNY; Alex Bores for Congress).
Judges, Reformers Split On How To Fix The Bench
Judicial groups have warned that wiping out the population formula could hand legislators broad discretion over where and when to create new judgeships, raising fears that court expansion could start to look more like politics than neutral administration. Supporters fire back that the cap is a relic of another era that now chokes the courts and leaves litigants waiting.
A 2025 report from Scrutinize and Reinvent Albany found that once judges are elevated to Acting Supreme Court Justice status, they almost never return to their prior roles. About 97 percent of those acting assignments stick, turning what is supposed to be a temporary workaround into an informal pipeline to the bench and helping fuel demands for either structural reform or far more transparency around promotions (Scrutinize).
What A Constitutional Change Actually Requires
Because the population cap is baked into Article VI of the state constitution, lawmakers cannot simply tweak it with a standard bill. Any change has to follow the constitutional amendment process, which requires approval from both the Assembly and Senate in two successive legislative sessions, followed by a statewide vote. The sponsor memo for S.3849/A.1100 lays out that path and explains how an amendment ultimately reaches the public for ratification (New York State Senate).
Backlogs Continue While Albany Hits Pause
With the 2026 session over and key sponsors gone or pursuing other offices, advocates say the fight will simply pick up again next year. The next round is expected to focus heavily on who would control any new seats and how they would be distributed around the state.
In the meantime, the courts will keep leaning on Acting Supreme Court Justices to soak up the overflow from crowded calendars. Watchdog groups warn that this stopgap needs to be paired with clearer rules or a deeper structural fix before New Yorkers see real relief from the system’s mounting delays (Reinvent Albany).
