00 SPONSOR SUBSTITUTE FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 4 01 Proposing amendments to the Constitution of the State of Alaska relating to the office of 02 attorney general. 03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04  * Section 1. Article III, sec. 15, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is amended to read: 05 Section 15. Compensation. The compensation of the governor, [AND] the 06 lieutenant governor, and the attorney general shall be prescribed by law and shall 07 not be diminished during their term of office, unless by general law applying to all 08 salaried officers of the State.  09  * Sec. 2. Article III, sec. 25, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is amended to read: 10 Section 25. Department Heads. The head of each principal department shall 11 be a single executive unless otherwise provided by law. The head of a principal  12 department [HE] shall be appointed by the governor, subject to confirmation by a 13 majority of the members of the legislature in joint session. The head of a principal  14 department [, AND] shall serve at the pleasure of the governor, except as otherwise 15 provided in this article with respect to the lieutenant governor and the attorney  16 general [SECRETARY OF STATE]. The heads of all principal departments shall be 01 citizens of the United States. 02  * Sec. 3. Article III, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is amended by adding a new section 03 to read: 04 Section 28. Attorney General. (a) The governor shall appoint the attorney 05 general. The governor shall make the appointment from among three qualified persons 06 nominated by the judicial council whenever there is a vacancy under (d) of this 07 section. The attorney general is subject to legislative confirmation. The attorney 08 general shall be responsible to the people of the state and does not serve at the 09 pleasure of the governor. The attorney general shall perform the duties prescribed by 10 law. 11 (b) The attorney general shall, in the manner provided by law, be subject to 12 approval or rejection on a nonpartisan ballot at every general election, notwithstanding 13 a succession to the office of governor under Section 13 of this article, held after the 14 attorney general's appointment. 15 (c) A person is not eligible to serve as attorney general unless the person has 16 the qualifications prescribed by law for a superior court judge. A person who has 17 served as attorney general for four full or partial successive two-year terms shall not 18 again be eligible to hold that office until one full two-year term has intervened. 19 (d) The office of attorney general becomes vacant when the attorney general 20 dies, resigns, or is impeached and removed from office. The office also becomes 21 vacant ninety days after the general election at which the attorney general is rejected 22 by a majority of those voting on the question or ninety days after the general election 23 at which the attorney general fails to file a declaration of candidacy, or when the term 24 of a governor begins under Section 4 of this article in a general election year in which 25 the governor who appointed the attorney general is not a candidate for that office or 26 fails to receive the greatest number of votes for the office in the general election. 27  * Sec. 4. Article XV, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is amended by adding a new 28 section to read: 29 Section 30. Transition Relating to Appointment of First Attorney General  30 Subject to Retention by Popular Vote. The judicial council shall nominate three 31 qualified persons under Section 28(a) of Article III within 90 days of the effective date 01 of that section. The term of the incumbent attorney general serving on the effective 02 date of that section ends on the earlier of the thirtieth day after the judicial council 03 submits its nominations under this section or the appointment of an attorney general 04 by the governor under Section 28 of Article III. 05  * Sec. 5. The amendments proposed by this resolution shall be placed before the voters of 06 the state at the next general election in conformity with art. XIII, sec. 1, Constitution of the 07 State of Alaska, and the election laws of the state.