CSSCR 1(JUD): Relating to the procedure that the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature will use to reconsider bills and items vetoed by the governor.
00 CS FOR SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 1(JUD) 01 Relating to the procedure that the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature will use to 02 reconsider bills and items vetoed by the governor. 03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 04 WHEREAS, on January 11, 1956, the Alaska Constitutional Convention Delegates 05 voted 39-12 to adopt an amendment proposed by Delegate Katherine Nordale that inserted 06 into the section that became art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, the word 07 "immediately" following "shall," thereby directing that the legislature "shall meet 08 immediately in joint session and reconsider passage of the vetoed bill or item"; and 09 WHEREAS the delegates stated that the purpose of inserting the word "immediately" 10 in the section that became art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, was to direct the 11 legislature to meet in joint session and provide that the house of origin cannot "sit on the bill 12 and allow the veto to kill the bill"; and 13 WHEREAS, during the First Regular Session of the First Alaska State Legislature in 14 1959, Senator Joseph Earl Cooper, chair of the Senate Rules Committee, reported that "both 15 the State Constitution and the Joint Rules directed the House and Senate to meet immediately 16 upon receiving a veto message from the Governor"; and
01 WHEREAS, in response to the adoption of House Joint Resolution No. 11 by the 02 Alaska State Legislature in 1975, the voters of the state voted in 1976 to approve an 03 amendment to art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, further clarifying that 04 "[b]ills vetoed after adjournment of the first regular session of the legislature shall be 05 reconsidered by the legislature sitting as one body no later than the fifth day of the next 06 regular or special session," and "[b]ills vetoed after adjournment of the second regular session 07 shall be reconsidered by the legislature sitting as one body no later than the fifth day of a 08 special session of that legislature, if one is called"; and 09 WHEREAS Alaska State Legislature Uniform Rule 45 recognizes that the language 10 "shall meet immediately in joint session" under art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of 11 Alaska, requires that the bodies act "promptly," and also recognizes the five-day requirement 12 approved by the voters in 1976; and 13 WHEREAS, in January 2024, during the Second Regular Session of the Thirty-Third 14 Alaska State Legislature, members of the legislature reviewed the language in art. II, sec. 16, 15 Constitution of the State of Alaska, that states "the legislature shall meet immediately in joint 16 session and reconsider passage of the vetoed bill or item"; and 17 WHEREAS, without formally deciding whether the language "shall meet 18 immediately in joint session" in art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is 19 discretionary or mandatory, after receiving a veto message on Friday, March 15, 2024, with 20 regard to Senate Bill No. 140, the legislature met in joint session on Monday, March 18, 2024, 21 to reconsider passage of that measure; and 22 WHEREAS members of the public and the legislature should have predictability and 23 certainty about the process the legislature will follow for reconsideration of vetoed bills and 24 items; and 25 WHEREAS the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature finds that the precedent of the 26 First Alaska State Legislature and the interpretation of art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State 27 of Alaska, and the Joint Rules by Senator Joseph Earl Cooper, Senate Rules Committee chair 28 in the First Alaska State Legislature, are persuasive; and 29 WHEREAS the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature finds that the voters, by 30 approving House Joint Resolution No. 11 in 1976, expected and directed the Alaska State 31 Legislature to act within the first five days of the next regular or special session to reconsider
01 bills or items vetoed by the governor after adjournment; 02 BE IT RESOLVED that the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature interprets the 03 phrase "the legislature shall meet immediately" in art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of 04 Alaska, as meaning that an immediate joint session of the legislature is mandatory; and be it 05 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature finds that 06 Uniform Rule 45 requires that the legislature meet "promptly" in joint session; and be it 07 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature, in 08 accordance with Uniform Rule 45 and art. II, sec. 16, Constitution of the State of Alaska, will 09 "meet immediately in joint session" to "promptly" reconsider bills and items vetoed by the 10 governor; and be it 11 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature will meet in 12 joint session to reconsider vetoed bills and items as follows: 13 (1) If the legislature receives a veto message during session, upon receiving 14 the veto message, the legislature shall meet immediately in joint session to reconsider the 15 vetoed bill or item; 16 (2) If the legislature receives a veto message after adjournment of the first 17 regular session and no special session is called, the legislature shall meet in joint session to 18 reconsider the vetoed bill or item not later than the fifth day of the next regular session; 19 (3) If the legislature receives a veto message after adjournment of the first or 20 second regular session and a special session is called, the legislature shall meet in joint 21 session to reconsider the vetoed bill or item not later than the fifth day of the special session; 22 (4) If the legislature receives a veto message after adjournment of the second 23 regular session and no special session is called, the legislature will not meet in joint session to 24 reconsider the vetoed bill or item.