PRINTER'S NO.  862

  

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

  

SENATE BILL

 

No.

842

Session of

2011

  

  

INTRODUCED BY EARLL, ERICKSON, FONTANA, PICCOLA, M. WHITE AND LEACH, MARCH 15, 2011

  

  

REFERRED TO JUDICIARY, MARCH 15, 2011  

  

  

  

AN ACT

  

1

Amending Title 71 (State Government) of the Pennsylvania

2

Consolidated Statutes, establishing the Appellate Court

3

Nominating Commission.

4

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

5

hereby enacts as follows:

6

Section 1.  Title 71 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated

7

Statutes is amended by adding a part to read:

8

PART III

9

JUDICIAL MATTERS

10

Chapter

11

21.  Appellate Court Nominating Commission

12

CHAPTER 21

13

APPELLATE COURT NOMINATING COMMISSION

14

Sec.

15

2101.  Definitions.

16

2102.  Establishment and purpose.

17

2103.  Membership, qualifications and operation.

18

2104.  Judicial nominee applicants.

 


1

§ 2101.  Definitions.

2

The following words and phrases when used in this chapter

3

shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

4

context clearly indicates otherwise:

5

"Business organization."  An organization that represents the

6

interests of persons engaged in commercial, industrial or

7

agricultural enterprises.

8

"Civic group."  A Pennsylvania nonprofit corporation that is

9

exempt from Federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the

10

Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (Public Law 99-514, 26 U.S.C. §

11

501(c)(3)). The term does not include any organization formed

12

for a religious purpose or any organization that does not have

13

members who are Pennsylvania residents.

14

"Commission."  The Appellate Court Nominating Commission

15

established under section 14 of Article V of the Constitution of

16

Pennsylvania and under section 2102 (relating to establishment

17

and purpose).

18

"Department."  The Department of State of the Commonwealth.

19

"Law school."  A graduate school located in this

20

Commonwealth, accredited by the American Bar Association and

21

offering study leading to the degree of Juris Doctor.

22

"Law school dean" or "dean."  The administrator in charge of

23

a law school.

24

"Lobbyist."  As defined in 65 Pa.C.S. § 13A03 (relating to

25

definitions).

26

"Professional association."  An organization that represents

27

the interests of its members who practice a profession. The term

28

does not include associations that represent lawyers.

29

"Public members."  Members of the commission appointed under

30

section 2103(a)(3) (relating to membership, qualifications and

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1

operation).

2

"Public safety association."  An organization that represents

3

the interests of its members who are engaged in an occupation

4

responsible for public safety, including law enforcement

5

agencies, district attorneys' associations, victims' rights

6

groups, fire departments or emergency medical service providers.

7

"Secretary."  The Secretary of the Commonwealth.

8

"Union."  An organization of employees, not dominated or

9

controlled by any employer or any employer organization, having

10

among its purposes that of collective bargaining as to the terms

11

and conditions of employment. The term includes a federation of

12

such organizations.

13

§ 2102.  Establishment and purpose.

14

Under section 14 of Article V of the Constitution of

15

Pennsylvania, there is established an Appellate Court Nominating

16

Commission within the department. The purpose of the commission

17

shall be to nominate individuals for the offices of justice of

18

the Supreme Court and judge of the Superior Court and

19

Commonwealth Court.

20

§ 2103.  Membership, qualifications and operation.

21

(a)  Composition.--The commission shall be comprised of the

22

following:

23

(1)  Four legislative appointees. The following shall

24

apply:

25

(i)  Appointments are as follows:

26

(A)  One individual appointed by the President

27

pro tempore of the Senate.

28

(B)  One individual appointed by the Minority

29

Leader of the Senate.

30

(C)  One individual appointed by the Speaker of

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1

the House of Representatives.

2

(D)  One individual appointed by the Minority

3

Leader of the House of Representatives.

4

(ii)  Each of the members appointed under

5

subparagraph (i) must be members of the bar of the

6

Supreme Court but may not be justices, judges or

7

magisterial district judges.

8

(iii)  None of the members appointed under

9

subparagraph (i) may be members of the General Assembly

10

or their staff or a relative of a member of the General

11

Assembly. For purposes of this subparagraph, a relative

12

shall include a wife, husband, child, mother, father,

13

sister or brother.

14

(2)  Four members appointed by the Governor. The

15

following shall apply:

16

(i)  Only two individuals shall be members of the bar

17

of the Supreme Court and may not be justices, judges or

18

magisterial district judges.

19

(ii)  At the time of appointment, all individuals

20

shall be residents of different counties.

21

(iii)  No more than two individuals shall be

22

registered in the same political party.

23

(iv)  None of the members appointed by the Governor

24

may be a member of the Governor's staff or a relative of

25

the Governor. For purposes of this subparagraph, a

26

relative shall include a wife, husband, child, mother,

27

father, sister or brother.

28

(3)  Six public members. The following shall apply:

29

(i)  One public member shall be a dean of one of the

30

law schools located in this Commonwealth, who shall be

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1

selected as follows:

2

(A)  Within 30 days following the effective date

3

of this section and at least 120 days prior to the

4

expiration of each term of the law school dean member

5

of the commission, the secretary shall notify each

6

law school dean that they are to choose from among

7

themselves a law school dean to serve as a member of

8

the commission.

9

(B)  Within 60 days following receipt of the

10

notification under clause (A), the deans shall choose

11

who among them will be a member of the commission.

12

(C)  As soon as practicable following their

13

selection, the deans shall send a letter to the

14

secretary, signed by each dean, notifying the

15

secretary of their selection.

16

(D)  Upon expiration of a dean's term on the

17

commission, the same process shall be used to fill

18

the vacancy, except that the successor dean shall

19

come from a different law school than the outgoing

20

dean.

21

(ii)  Five public members, one each selected by

22

business organizations, civic organizations, professional

23

associations, public safety organizations and unions. The

24

following shall apply:

25

(A)  Within 30 days following the effective date

26

of this section and at least 120 days prior to the

27

expiration of each term of the public members of the

28

commission other than the law school dean member, the

29

secretary shall transmit a notice for publication to

30

two newspapers in every county in this Commonwealth

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1

and to the Legislative Reference Bureau for

2

publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin that will

3

alert the organizations described under subparagraph

4

(ii) that they may apply to be included in the

5

process of appointing members of the commission. The

6

notice shall also describe details of the application

7

process and shall include a form of application to be

8

used. The notice and the form of application shall

9

also be posted on the department's Internet website.

10

(B)  An organization described under this

11

subparagraph that desires to participate in the

12

nomination process shall submit an application to the

13

secretary. All applications shall be submitted by the

14

date occurring 30 days after the date of publication

15

in the Pennsylvania Bulletin of the notice described

16

under clause (A) and shall include all of the

17

following:

18

(I)  The name and address of the organization

19

and the name and telephone number of a contact

20

person. The organization must indicate that its

21

principal place of business is in this

22

Commonwealth.

23

(II)  A statement as to the specific category

24

for which the organization wishes to be

25

considered. An organization may only submit an

26

application for one of the categories listed

27

under this subparagraph for a given vacancy.

28

(III)  A statement of the number of members

29

of the organization who are Commonwealth

30

residents as of the date of the application.

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1

(IV)  Any other information required by the

2

department. Any person who makes a false

3

statement on an application submitted under this

4

subparagraph shall be subject to prosecution

5

under 18 Pa.C.S. §§ 4903 (relating to false

6

swearing) and 4904 (relating to unsworn

7

falsification to authorities).

8

(C)  Within 15 days following the last day for

9

receipt of applications under clause (B), the

10

secretary shall notify the five organizations in each

11

of the categories listed under this subparagraph with

12

the highest number of members who are Commonwealth

13

residents that they are eligible to submit the name

14

of a person in their organization who meets the

15

requirements of subsection (b) who desires to be

16

considered for selection as a member of the

17

commission. The names shall be submitted in writing

18

to the secretary within 15 days following receipt of

19

the notification required under this clause.

20

(D)  Within ten days following receipt of the

21

names of individuals submitted by organizations under

22

clause (C), the secretary shall publicly draw lots

23

from each of the five categories of organizations to

24

determine who shall serve as the public member of the

25

commission from each category.

26

(E)  Upon expiration of a public member's term on

27

the commission, the same selection process shall be

28

used to fill the vacancy, except as provided in

29

subsection (c)(4)(iv).

30

(b)  Qualifications of members.--

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1

(1)  All members of the commission shall have been a

2

resident of this Commonwealth for at least one year prior to

3

the member's appointment.

4

(2)  All members of the commission must be 18 years of

5

age or older as of the date of their appointment.

6

(3)  During his or her term a member may not do any of

7

the following:

8

(i)  Hold any office in any political party or

9

political organization or hold any elected or appointed

10

public office, compensated or uncompensated, except that

11

members may serve as part-time solicitors to a political

12

subdivision.

13

(ii)  Be employed by the unified judicial system.

14

(4)  No person who is a lobbyist may be appointed to

15

serve on the commission.

16

(5)  In making appointments to the commission, each

17

nominating or appointing authority shall take into

18

consideration that the commission should include both men and

19

women as well as individuals from the civic, labor and

20

business communities and individuals who have racially and

21

ethnically diverse backgrounds and who reflect the geographic

22

diversity of this Commonwealth.

23

(c)  Terms of office, removal and vacancies.--

24

(1)  (i)  Commission members shall serve a term of four

25

years, except as otherwise provided in this subsection.

26

(ii)  The original members appointed by the Governor

27

shall serve the following terms: one member shall serve

28

for four years, one member shall serve for three years,

29

one member shall serve for two years and one member shall

30

serve for one year.

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1

(iii)  The original members appointed by the General

2

Assembly shall serve the following terms: the member

3

appointed by the President pro tempore of the Senate

4

shall serve for four years, the member appointed by the

5

Minority Leader of the Senate shall serve for two years,

6

the member appointed by the Speaker of the House of

7

Representatives shall serve for three years and the

8

member appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of

9

Representatives shall serve for one year.

10

(2)  Limitations on terms shall be as follows:

11

(i)  Each member shall only serve until the end of

12

that member's term.

13

(ii)  A member who has served a full term shall not

14

be permitted to serve during the next succeeding term.

15

(iii)  For purposes of this paragraph, service for a

16

period of two years or less shall not be considered a

17

full term.

18

(3)  Commission members may only be removed by the

19

commission for the following reasons:

20

(i)  For a violation of the commission's rules

21

governing the conduct of members.

22

(ii)  If the person, during the course of the

23

person's term, no longer meets the qualifications of

24

subsection (b)(1), (2), (3) or (4).

25

(4)  In the event of a vacancy on the commission the

26

following shall apply:

27

(i)  If the vacancy occurs for a reason stated under

28

paragraph (3), the vacancy shall be filled for the

29

remainder of the term in the same manner the outgoing

30

member was initially appointed, except that, if the

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1

vacancy is created because a public member selected under

2

subsection (a)(3)(ii) is removed from the commission, the

3

organization that appointed the member shall select a new

4

member.

5

(ii)  If a vacancy occurs as a result of the

6

expiration of the term of a legislative or gubernatorial

7

appointee, a new member shall be appointed in the same

8

manner as the member was initially appointed.

9

(iii)  If a vacancy occurs as a result of the

10

expiration of the term of a public member selected under

11

subsection (a)(3)(i), the vacancy shall be filled in the

12

same manner as the member was originally selected.

13

(iv)  If a vacancy occurs as a result of the

14

expiration of the term of a public member selected under

15

subsection (a)(3)(ii), the secretary shall fill the

16

vacancy in the same manner as the member was initially

17

selected, except that the public organization that

18

nominated the commission member whose vacancy is being

19

filled may not participate in the process to select the

20

immediately succeeding commission member.

21

(d)  Operation.--

22

(1)  From among the commission's members, the commission

23

shall select a chairperson, vice chairperson and other

24

officers as the commission shall determine.

25

(2)  The commission shall establish its own rules of

26

procedure and rules governing the conduct of its members.

27

(3)  Nine members shall constitute a quorum. A majority

28

of the members present at any meeting of the commission shall

29

be required for all actions of the commission.

30

(4)  Members shall not be compensated for their service

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1

as members of the commission but shall be reimbursed for

2

expenses necessarily incurred in the discharge of their

3

official duties in accordance with Commonwealth policy in

4

effect for community agencies under the Governor's

5

jurisdiction.

6

(5)  The department shall provide administrative support

7

for the commission.

8

§ 2104.  Judicial nominee applicants.

9

(a)  Solicitation.--

10

(1)  When it is known that a vacancy will occur, the

11

commission shall publicly announce the vacancy no later than

12

90 days prior to the expected date of the vacancy.

13

(2)  If an unexpected vacancy occurs, the commission

14

shall publicly announce the vacancy within 30 days following

15

the vacancy.

16

(3)  The commission shall develop the form of application

17

to be submitted and shall make the form available at the time

18

a public announcement regarding a vacancy is made.

19

Applications may be submitted by individuals desiring to be

20

considered for nomination to fill a vacancy commencing with

21

the date of the public announcement and ending on the date

22

occurring 30 days later.

23

(b)  Review of applications and evaluation of applicants.--

24

(1)  Following the date by which applications are due,

25

the commission shall review and perform an initial screening

26

of all applications submitted to fill vacancies.

27

(2)  The commission shall use the initial screening

28

process to result in a list containing names of at least 50%

29

of those applicants who submitted applications. The

30

applicants on the list shall undergo further evaluation and

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1

consideration by the commission. At this time, information

2

such as names and biographical information pertaining to the

3

list of applicants who will undergo further evaluation and

4

consideration shall be made public.

5

(3)  The commission shall interview the applicants and

6

may interview individuals with knowledge of the applicant.

7

(4)  The commission may obtain any appropriate or

8

relevant documentation that relates to the applicant's

9

suitability to serve as a justice or judge, including

10

information submitted by the public.

11

(c)  Selection.--

12

(1)  From the applications received and reviewed under

13

subsection (b), the commission shall agree on five names of

14

the most qualified applicants whose names will be recommended

15

to the Governor. In order for an individual's name to appear

16

on the list, the individual must meet all of the following

17

requirements:

18

(i)  Notwithstanding the provisions of section

19

2103(d)(3), (relating to membership, qualifications and

20

operation), received affirmative votes from at least

21

eight of the members of the commission.

22

(ii)  Is a licensed member in good standing of the

23

bar of the Supreme Court.

24

(iii)  Has either practiced law, served as a judge of

25

a Federal court, served on a court or courts of record of

26

this Commonwealth or been engaged in a law-related

27

occupation for an aggregate of at least ten years prior

28

to the date of the nomination.

29

(iv)  Has demonstrated integrity, judicial

30

temperament, professional competence and experience and

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1

commitment to the community.

2

(2)  The commission shall consider that each of the

3

appellate courts should include both men and women who come

4

from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds and who

5

reflect the geographic diversity of this Commonwealth.

6

(d)  Presentation of applicants to the Governor.--

7

(1)  The list of the most qualified applicants shall be

8

presented to the Governor no later than 30 days prior to the

9

expected date of the vacancy or, with respect to an

10

unexpected vacancy, no later than 60 days after the vacancy

11

occurs.

12

(2)  The names of the applicants on the list shall appear

13

in alphabetical order. The commission shall submit

14

biographical information regarding each applicant along with

15

the list of names.

16

(3)  Only one list may be provided to the Governor for

17

each vacancy. If there is more than one vacancy on the same

18

court, separate lists shall be submitted to the Governor for

19

each vacancy, and the lists shall contain no more than two

20

names in common.

21

(4)  In the event of death or withdrawal of a person

22

whose name appears on the list presented to the Governor, the

23

commission shall submit to the Governor an addendum to the

24

list providing the name of a new applicant selected in the

25

same manner as the other individuals on the list.

26

(e)  Publication.--

27

(1)  Immediately following submission to the Governor,

28

the list shall be submitted to the Senate and shall be made

29

available to the public.

30

(2)  The biographical information of the applicants shall

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1

be made available to the Senate and to the public.

2

(3)  All other information submitted to or developed by

3

the commission concerning applicants, whether or not the

4

applicants' names appear on the list submitted to the

5

Governor, and all proceedings, deliberations and votes of the

6

commission shall remain confidential and shall not be subject

7

to disclosure under the act of February 14, 2008 (P.L.6,

8

No.3), known as the Right-to-Know Law.

9

Section 2.  The Secretary of the Commonwealth shall transmit

10

notice to the Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in

11

the Pennsylvania Bulletin of passage of a constitutional

12

amendment providing for an Appellate Court Nominating

13

Commission.

14

Section 3.  This act shall take effect as follows:

15

(1)  Section 2 and this section shall take effect

16

immediately.

17

(2)  The remainder of this act shall take effect upon

18

publication of the notice under section 2.

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