Trustees

https://www.congress.gov/congressional-report/110th-congress/house-report/941/1

On October 2, 2007, the Subcommittee on Commercial and
Administrative Law held an oversight hearing on the ``United
States Trustee Program: Watchdog or Attack Dog?'' Witnesses
included: Clifford White, III, Director, Executive Office for
United States Trustees; the Honorable A. Jay Cristol, United
States Bankruptcy Judge for the Southern District of Florida;
the Honorable Eugene Wedoff, United States Bankruptcy Judge for
the Northern District of Illinois; Paul Uyehara, an attorney
with the Community Legal Services Language Access Project in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on behalf of the National
Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys; and Mary Powers,
a former United States Trustee Program trial attorney. The
hearing provided an opportunity to consider the work and
responsibilities of the United States Trustee Program,
particularly in light of recent criticisms concerning its
enforcement efforts in the area of consumer bankruptcy.

Bankruptcy Trustee Compensation

Summary.--Bankruptcy trustees supervise the administration
of chapter 7 cases on behalf of, and as a fiduciary for, the
chapter 7 estate. Their principal function is to collect and
liquidate the property of the estate and to distribute the
proceeds to the estate's creditors. Trustees are indispensable
to the functioning of the bankruptcy system. Most chapter 7
cases are handled by trustees with only minimal involvement by
the bankruptcy court. Despite their importance, trustees
receive only a $60 per-case fee as compensation for their
services in most cases. Serious questions have been raised as
to whether this minimal compensation is adequate to attract and
retain qualified trustees.
On September 16, 2008, the Subcommittee held a hearing on
the subject of chapter 7 bankruptcy trustee compensation. The
hearing provided an opportunity for Subcommittee members to
hear testimony on the adequacy of trustee compensation, the
effect of compensation levels on the functioning of the
bankruptcy system, and proposals to increase trustee
compensation. Four witnesses testified: Edward Crane, former
President, National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees; Robert
Furr, President, National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees;
the Honorable Margaret D. McGarity, United States Bankruptcy
Judge, United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District
of Wisconsin; and Jack Williams, Professor of Law, Georgia
State University College of Law, and Scholar-in-Residence,
American Bankruptcy Institute.