Bill Text: AZ SCR1046 | 2011 | Fiftieth Legislature 1st Regular | Introduced
Bill Title: Supreme; appellate judges; appointment; confirmation
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-02-02 - Referred to Senate JUD Committee [SCR1046 Detail]
Download: Arizona-2011-SCR1046-Introduced.html
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REFERENCE TITLE: supreme; appellate judges; appointment; confirmation |
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State of Arizona Senate Fiftieth Legislature First Regular Session 2011
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SCR 1046 |
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Introduced by Senator Gould
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A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of Arizona; amending article VI, sections 4, 36 and 37, Constitution of arizona; relating to the judicial department.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it resolved by the Senate of the State of Arizona, the House of Representatives concurring:
1. Article VI, sections 4, 36 and 37, Constitution of Arizona, are proposed to be amended as follows if approved by the voters and on proclamation of the Governor:
4. Supreme court; appellate court; term of office
Section 4. A. Through December 31, 2012, justices of the supreme court shall hold office for a regular term of six years except as provided by this article.
B. For any term beginning on or after January 1, 2013, justices of the supreme court and judges of any intermediate appellate court shall hold office for a regular term of ten years except as provided by this article.
36. Commission on appellate court appointments; terms, appointments and vacancies on commission
Section 36. A. There shall be A nonpartisan commission on appellate court appointments which shall be composed of is established and consists of the following members:
1. The chief justice of the supreme court, who shall be chairman. , In the event of the absence or incapacity of the chairman, the supreme court shall appoint a justice of the supreme court to serve in the chief justice's place and stead.
2. Five attorney members, who shall be nominated by the board of governors of the state bar of Arizona and appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate in the manner prescribed by law, and ten nonattorney. For each position subject to nomination by the state bar, the state bar shall send to the governor the names of at least three nominees. The majority of nominees shall be from the same political party as the governor. If there are not sufficient applicants to send the names of three nominees for each opening to the governor, the state bar shall send the names of all qualified nominees to the governor. If the governor fails to appoint the members within sixty days after receiving the names of the nominees, the state bar shall forward the names to the president of the senate, who shall make the appointments.
3. Thirteen members who shall be appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate in the manner prescribed by law. At least ninety days prior to a term expiring or within twenty-one days of a vacancy occurring for a nonattorney member on the commission for appellate court appointments, the governor shall appoint a nominating committee of nine members, not more than five of whom may be from the same political party.
B. The makeup of the committee shall commission on appellate court appointments, to the extent feasible, shall reflect the diversity of the population of the state. Members shall not be attorneys and shall not hold any governmental office, elective or appointive, for profit. The committee shall provide public notice that a vacancy exists and shall solicit, review and forward to the governor all applications along with the committee's recommendations for appointment.
C. Attorney members of the commission shall have resided in the state, and shall have been admitted to practice before the supreme court for not less than five years and shall be members in good standing with the state bar. Not more than three attorney members who are nominated and appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 2 shall be members of the same political party. and Not more than two attorney members shall be residents of any one county.
D. Nonattorney Members who are nominated and appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 shall have resided in the state for not less than five years and none shall not be judges, be serving currently as a judge. Not more than two of the members who are appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 SHALL be attorneys who have been admitted to the practice of law in this state for not less than five years and who are in good standing with the state bar. Not more than one of the members who is appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 shall be a retired judges or admitted to practice before the supreme court judge. Not more than five nonattorney nine members who are appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 shall be members of the same political party. Not more than two nonattorney members six of the members who are appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 shall be residents of any one county.
E. None of The attorney or and nonattorney members of the commission shall not hold any governmental office, elective or appointive, for profit, and no an attorney member of the commission shall not be eligible for appointment to any judicial office of the state until one year after he the attorney member ceases to be a member of the commission.
F. Attorney Members of the commission shall serve staggered four-year terms and nonattorney members shall serve staggered four-year terms. The terms of members who are nominated and appointed pursuant to subsection a, paragraph 2 expire on the first Monday in January of 2015 and every four years thereafter. The terms of members who are appointed pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 expire on January 1, 2013 and every two years thereafter.
G. Vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired terms in the same manner as the original appointments, except that if a vacancy occurs in a position that is subject to nomination by the state bar, the state bar shall send at least three names to the governor to allow the governor to make the replacement appointment consistent with the requirements of this section.
B. H. No person other than the chief justice shall serve at the same time as a member of more than one judicial appointment commission.
C. I. In making or confirming appointments to the appellate court commission, the governor, the senate and the state bar shall endeavor to see that the commission reflects the diversity of Arizona's this state's population.
In the event of the absence or incapacity of the chairman the supreme court shall appoint a justice thereof to serve in his place and stead.
D. J. Prior to Before making recommendations to the governor as hereinafter provided, the commission shall conduct investigations, hold public hearings and take public testimony. An executive session as prescribed by rule may be held upon on a two-thirds vote of the members of the commission in a public hearing. Final decisions as to recommendations shall be made without regard to political affiliation in an impartial and objective manner. The commission shall consider the diversity of the state's population, however, the primary consideration shall be merit. Voting shall be in a public hearing. The expenses of meetings of the commission and the attendance of members thereof for travel and subsistence shall be paid from the general fund of the state as state officers are paid, upon on claims approved by the chairman.
E. K. After public hearings, the supreme court shall adopt rules of procedure for the commission on appellate court appointments. If the commission on appellate court appointments and the commission on trial court appointments propose by a majority vote of each commission to amend the rules, the supreme court shall adopt the amendments if the amendments are lawful.
F. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A, the initial appointments for the five additional nonattorney members and the two additional attorney members of the commission shall be designated by the governor for staggered terms as follows:
1. One appointment for a nonattorney member shall be for a one‑year term.
2. Two appointments for nonattorney members shall be for a two‑year term.
3. Two appointments for nonattorney members shall be for a three-year term.
4. One appointment for an attorney member shall be for a one‑year term.
5. One appointments for an attorney member shall be for a two‑year term.
G. The members currently serving on the commission may continue to serve until the expiration of their normal terms. All subsequent appointments shall be made as prescribed by this section.
37. Judicial vacancies and appointments; initial terms; residence; age
Section 37. A. Within sixty days from the occurrence of a any vacancy in the office of a justice or judge of any court of record, except for vacancies occurring in the office of a judge of the superior court or a judge of a court of record inferior to the superior court the supreme court or an intermediate appellate court of record, the commission on appellate court appointments, if the vacancy is in the supreme court or an intermediate appellate court of record, shall submit to the governor the names of not less than three six persons nominated by it to fill such each vacancy. , no more than two of whom shall be members of the same political party unless there are more than four such nominees, in which event not more than sixty percentum of such nominees shall be members of the same political party. Not all of the nominees shall be from the same political party, except that if six or fewer persons apply, the commission shall nominate all qualified applicants.
B. Within sixty days from the occurrence of a any vacancy in the office of a judge of the superior court or a judge of a court of record inferior to the superior court except for vacancies occurring in the office of a judge of the superior court or a judge of a court of record inferior to the superior court in a county having a population of less than two hundred fifty thousand persons according to the most recent United States census, the commission on trial court appointments for the county in which the vacancy occurs shall submit to the governor the names of not less than three persons nominated by it to fill such each vacancy, no more than two of whom shall be members of the same political party unless there are more than four such nominees, in which event no more than sixty per centum cent of such nominees shall be members of the same political party. A nominee shall be under sixty-five years of age at the time his the nominee's name is submitted to the governor. Judges of the superior court shall be subject to retention or rejection by a vote of the qualified electors of the county from which they were appointed at the general election in the manner provided by section 38 of this article.
C. A vacancy in the office of a justice or a judge of such courts of record the supreme court or an intermediate appellate court of record shall be filled by appointment by the governor without regard to political affiliation and based on merit from one of the nominees whose names shall be submitted to him the governor as hereinabove provided, subject to senate confirmation. The senate may reject an appointment. If the senate does not reject an appointee by a majority vote of its members within sixty days after appointment by the governor, that appointee shall take office as if the appointee had been confirmed. The president of the senate or a majority of the senate's members may call the senate into special session at any time for the purpose of considering a judicial appointment.
D. A vacancy in the office of a judge of the superior court except for vacancies occurring in the office of a judge of the superior court or a judge of a court of record inferior to the superior court in a county having a population of less than two hundred fifty thousand persons according to the most recent United States census shall be filled by appointment by the governor without regard to political affiliation and based on merit from one of the nominees whose names shall be submitted to the governor as hereinabove provided.
E. In making the appointment for a justice or judge, the governor shall consider the diversity of the state's population for an appellate court appointment and the diversity of the county's population for a trial court appointment, however, the primary consideration shall be merit. If the governor does not appoint one of such the nominees to fill such the vacancy within sixty days after their names are submitted to the governor by such the commission, the chief justice of the supreme court forthwith shall promptly appoint on the basis of merit alone without regard to political affiliation one of such the nominees to fill such the vacancy. If such the commission does not, within sixty days after such the vacancy occurs, submit the names of nominees as hereinabove provided in this subsection, the governor shall have the power to may appoint any qualified person to fill such the vacancy at any time thereafter prior to before the time the names of the nominees to fill such the vacancy are submitted to the governor as hereinabove provided in this subsection.
F. Each appointed justice or judge so appointed shall initially hold office for a term ending sixty days following the next regular general election after the expiration of a term of two four years in office. Thereafter, the terms of justices or judges of the supreme court, an intermediate appellate court and the superior court shall be as provided by this article.
D. G. A person who is appointed to fill a vacancy on an intermediate appellate court or another court of record now existing or hereafter established by law shall have been a resident of the counties or county in which that vacancy exists for at least one year prior to his before the person's appointment, in addition to possessing the other required qualifications. A nominee shall be under sixty-five years of age at the time his the nominee's name is submitted to the governor.
2. The Secretary of State shall submit this proposition to the voters at the next general election as provided by article XXI, Constitution of Arizona.
