Bill Text: FL S1664 | 2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Senate Confirmation/Appointments to Supreme Court
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-05-07 - Indefinitely postponed and withdrawn from consideration [S1664 Detail]
Download: Florida-2011-S1664-Introduced.html
Florida Senate - 2011 SJR 1664
By Senator Bogdanoff
25-01504A-11 20111664__
1 Senate Joint Resolution
2 A joint resolution proposing an amendment to Section
3 11 of Article V of the State Constitution to require
4 Senate confirmation of appointments to the office of
5 justice of the Supreme Court.
6
7 Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
8
9 That the following amendment to Section 11 of Article V of
10 the State Constitution is agreed to and shall be submitted to
11 the electors of this state for approval or rejection at the next
12 general election or at an earlier special election specifically
13 authorized by law for that purpose:
14 ARTICLE V
15 JUDICIARY
16 SECTION 11. Vacancies.—
17 (a) Whenever a vacancy occurs in a judicial office to which
18 election for retention applies, the governor shall fill the
19 vacancy by appointing for a term ending on the first Tuesday
20 after the first Monday in January of the year following the next
21 general election occurring at least one year after the date of
22 appointment, one of not fewer than three persons nor more than
23 six persons nominated by the appropriate judicial nominating
24 commission.
25 (b) The governor shall fill each vacancy on a circuit court
26 or on a county court, wherein the judges are elected by a
27 majority vote of the electors, by appointing for a term ending
28 on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January of the
29 year following the next primary and general election occurring
30 at least one year after the date of appointment, one of not
31 fewer than three persons nor more than six persons nominated by
32 the appropriate judicial nominating commission. An election
33 shall be held to fill that judicial office for the term of the
34 office beginning at the end of the appointed term.
35 (c) The nominations shall be made within thirty days from
36 the occurrence of a vacancy unless the period is extended by the
37 governor for a time not to exceed thirty days. The governor
38 shall make the appointment within sixty days after the
39 nominations have been certified to the governor.
40 (d) Each appointment of a justice of the supreme court is
41 subject to confirmation by the senate. If the senate votes to
42 not confirm the appointment, the appropriate judicial nominating
43 commission shall reconvene as though a new vacancy had occurred.
44 The commission may not renominate any person whose prior
45 appointment to fill the same vacancy was not confirmed by the
46 senate. The appointment of a justice is effective on the date of
47 confirmation by the senate.
48 (e)(d) There shall be a separate judicial nominating
49 commission as provided by general law for the supreme court,
50 each district court of appeal, and each judicial circuit for all
51 trial courts within the circuit. Uniform rules of procedure
52 shall be established by the judicial nominating commissions at
53 each level of the court system. Such rules, or any part thereof,
54 may be repealed by general law enacted by a majority vote of the
55 membership of each house of the legislature, or by the supreme
56 court, five justices concurring. Except for deliberations of the
57 judicial nominating commissions, the proceedings of the
58 commissions and their records shall be open to the public.
59 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be
60 placed on the ballot:
61 CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
62 ARTICLE V, SECTION 11
63 SENATE CONFIRMATION OF SUPREME COURT JUSTICES.—This
64 proposed amendment provides that the appointment of justices to
65 the Florida Supreme Court is subject to confirmation by the
66 Florida Senate. Under current law, the Governor appoints
67 justices from a list of nominees provided by a judicial
68 nominating commission, and appointments by the Governor are not
69 subject to confirmation. This amendment requires Senate
70 confirmation before the appointee can take office. If the Senate
71 votes not to confirm the appointment, the judicial nominating
72 commission must reconvene and may not renominate any person
73 whose prior appointment to fill the same vacancy was not
74 confirmed by the Senate.
75
76 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be
77 placed on the ballot if a court declares the preceding statement
78 defective and the decision of the court is not reversed:
79 CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
80 ARTICLE V, SECTION 11
81 REQUIRING SENATE CONFIRMATION OF APPOINTMENTS TO THE
82 SUPREME COURT.—The State Constitution currently provides that,
83 when a vacancy occurs in the office of justice of the Florida
84 Supreme Court, the Governor must fill the vacancy by appointing
85 a justice from nominees submitted by a judicial nominating
86 commission. This proposed amendment specifies that a person
87 appointed by the Governor to the office of justice of the
88 Florida Supreme Court is subject to confirmation by the Florida
89 Senate. Under the proposed amendment, if the Senate votes not to
90 confirm the appointment, the judicial nominating commission must
91 reconvene to nominate persons to the Governor. The commission
92 may not renominate for the same vacancy a person whose prior
93 appointment to that vacancy was not confirmed by the Senate.
94 Under the proposed amendment, the appointment of a justice of
95 the Supreme Court is not effective until the date of
96 confirmation by the Senate.
97
98 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be
99 placed on the ballot if a court declares the preceding statement
100 defective and the decision of the court is not reversed:
101 CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
102 ARTICLE V, SECTION 11
103 CONFIRMATION BY THE SENATE OF APPOINTMENTS BY THE GOVERNOR
104 TO THE SUPREME COURT.—Proposing an amendment to the State
105 Constitution to provide that the appointment of a person to fill
106 a vacancy on the Florida Supreme Court must be confirmed by the
107 Florida Senate. Currently under the State Constitution, when a
108 vacancy in the office of justice of the Supreme Court arises, a
109 judicial nominating commission convenes to interview
110 applications and present to the Governor a list of qualified
111 nominees for the vacancy. The Governor must appoint one of those
112 nominees to the position. Upon appointment by the Governor, the
113 person becomes a justice of the Supreme Court. This proposed
114 amendment requires that the appointment of a justice by the
115 Governor be confirmed by the Florida Senate. If the Senate
116 affirmatively rejects the appointment, the judicial nominating
117 commission shall reconvene and the Governor must make another
118 appointment. The judicial nominating commission may not
119 renominate a person whose prior appointment to fill the same
120 vacancy was not confirmed by the Senate. The appointment of a
121 justice is effective on the date of confirmation by the Senate.
122
123 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be
124 placed on the ballot if a court declares the preceding statement
125 defective and the decision of the court is not reversed:
126 CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT
127 ARTICLE V, SECTION 11
128 PROVIDING THAT APPOINTMENTS TO THE SUPREME COURT ARE
129 SUBJECT TO SENATE CONFIRMATION.—The State Constitution currently
130 requires vacancies to any judicial office that is subject to
131 election for retention to be filled through appointment by the
132 Governor of one person from a list of three to six persons
133 nominated by the appropriate judicial nominating commission.
134 This proposed amendment maintains the current process by which
135 the Governor appoints a person to judicial office, but it
136 further provides that each appointment of a justice of the
137 Supreme Court of Florida is subject to confirmation by the
138 Senate. If the Senate votes not to confirm the appointment, the
139 appropriate judicial nominating commission will reconvene as
140 though a new vacancy had occurred. The commission will not be
141 able to renominate any person whose prior appointment to fill
142 the same vacancy was not confirmed by the Senate. The
143 appointment of a justice is effective on the date of Senate
144 confirmation.
