Legislature(2019 - 2020)BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
03/15/2019 01:30 PM Senate JUDICIARY
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB55 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | SB 55 | TELECONFERENCED | |
SB 55-TEMP. APPOINTMENTS TO COURT OF APPEALS
1:34:04 PM
CHAIR HUGHES announced that the only order of business would be
SENATE BILL NO. 55, "An Act relating to judges of the court of
appeals; and providing for an effective date."
1:34:24 PM
SENATOR SHOWER moved to adopt the proposed committee substitute
to SB 55, work order 31-LS0485\M, Bruce, 3/13/19, referred to as
Version M, as the working document of the committee.
CHAIR HUGHES objected for the purpose of discussion.
1:34:46 PM.
BUDDY WHITT, Staff, Senator Shelley Hughes, Alaska State
Legislature, reviewed the changes in the proposed committee
substitute to SB 55, Version M. He said that the proposed
committee substitute would change the appointment of an acting
court of appeals judge from three years to two years. This would
differentiate the temporary appointment of a court of appeals
judge from the three permanent court of appeals judges, he said.
He reviewed the sectional analysis, which read as follows:
Section 3: Amends AS 22.07.070(c) to make the term of
service for the acting court of appeals two years
instead of three.
Section 6: Changes the effective date of the repeal of
AS 22.07.070(c) to July 1, 2021 to coincide with the
change to a two-year term.
1:35:48 PM
CHAIR HUGHES said that she considered having an acting court of
appeals judge be subject to the same process as a judicial
appointee to the court of appeals. However, that process can
take from eight months to a year. Therefore, she concluded that
it was best to shorten the term. [The three judges on the court
of appeals are chosen by the governor from a list of candidates
recommended by the Alaska Judicial Council.]
1:36:28 PM
NANCY MEADE, General Counsel, Administrative Offices, Alaska
Court System, said the court system welcomes the relief that
this bill will give to the court of appeals.
1:36:45 PM
SENATOR SHOWER recalled that at a previous hearing, the
committee had asked whether the court was interested in making
the acting judge a permanent position rather than a temporary
court of appeals appointment. He asked whether Ms. Meade had
discussed this with the court
MS. MEADE answered that it is the court's preference to make
this position a temporary position as reflected in the bill. The
court does not feel the need for a fourth permanent judge. She
explained that appellate courts operate most effectively with an
odd number of judges. The court does not think it needs five
members, but that the fourth acting judge will help the court
process its backlog of cases. At that point, the court would
like to revert to three permanent court of appeals judges. She
related that the court has two new judges. One judge was sworn
in yesterday, one has served since 2017, and the third judge has
served on the court of appeals since 2012. She said the judges
believe they have developed a strategy to further streamline the
process once they have caught up.
1:37:58 PM
CHAIR HUGHES removed her objection.
1:38:12 PM
SENATOR KIEHL remarked that he has no objection to moving the
bill from committee. He agreed that it is important to have the
Alaska Judicial Council (AJC) involved. He said that he worked
with Ms. Meade on this issue. However, they were not able to
find a solution prior to this meeting. He agreed that the court
of appeals needs temporary relief to help it "get the pig
through the python" so it can get back to its regular business.
1:38:57 PM
SENATOR MICCICHE joined the meeting.
1:39:13 PM
SENATOR KIEHL said that the court of appeals is a court of
record that sets precedents. It is critical as SB 55 moves
forward to find a way to ensure that only the most qualified
judges serve on the court of appeals. He said the Alaska
Judicial Council (AJC) is the constitutional way to do so.
He emphasized that he would rather have a governor with whom he
has political and philosophical differences make an extra
appointment than to skip that step. He said that he will
continue to look for a way to [involve the AJC] in the process.
However, he reiterated that he would like to give the court
system the relief it needs to process its backlog of cases. In
closing, he reiterated that he will not object the bill moving
from committee, but he will continue to try to add a
depoliticizing, screening step to the process.
1:39:56 PM
CHAIR HUGHES said that she shares the very same concerns. She
explained that she vetted options, which is one reason the term
for the acting judge has been reduced from three to two years.
In response to Senator Micciche, she explained that the
committee adopted Version M of SB 55. She explained that Version
M would reduce the judicial appointment from three years to two
years for the acting judge to serve on the court of appeals.
1:40:40 PM
SENATOR MICCICHE moved to report the proposed committee
substitute For SB 55, work order, 31-LS0485\M, Bruce, 3/13/19,
referred to as Version M, from committee with individual
recommendations and accompanying fiscal note.
There being no objections, the CSSB 55(JUD), was reported from
the Senate Judiciary Standing Committee.
1:40:56 PM
CHAIR HUGHES reviewed upcoming committee announcements. She
anticipated that the committee would consider a number of
amendments to SB 35 and develop a committee substitute. She
said, "We want to get it right." As the policy committee, the
committee wants to do a thorough job before it moves the bill
to the next committee of referral, which is the [Senate] Finance
[Standing] Committee."
1:41:56 PM
SENATOR MICCICHE thanked Chair Hughes for taking the time to
work on SB 35. He acknowledged that drafting bills is difficult,
and these issues are very important ones. He said he appreciated
her diligence to be certain "we get it right" before the
committee moves the bill. He said he was happy to support Chair
Hughes in that process.
1:42:19 PM
CHAIR HUGHES remarked that some criminal statutes were addressed
in months of committee hearings in the last few years. However,
the statutes pertaining to sexual crimes have not been
addressed. In some ways this process is reform work and it is
quite complicated. She said she thought it was the right thing
to slow the process down. She expressed appreciation for the
committee members' support.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| CSSB55 Version M.pdf |
SJUD 3/15/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SB 55 |
| CSSB55 Explanation of Changes from Version A to M.pdf |
SJUD 3/15/2019 1:30:00 PM |
SB 55 |