Idaho GOP fast-track, approve bill to give governor more power over judge appointments

BOISE (Idaho Statesman) — A bill that would transform the Idaho Judicial Council — a move opponents say would politicize the process for appointing judges — is headed to Gov. Brad Little’s desk.

After the House rushed to pass the legislation last week, the Senate on Thursday cleared the bill on a 26-9 vote — just eight days after it was introduced. House

Bill 782 increases the number of gubernatorial appointments to the Idaho Judicial Council, the nonpartisan committee that vets and nominates candidates for judicial vacancies. The council nominates two to four people to fill any vacancy on a district court, appeals court or Idaho Supreme Court, and the governor chooses one from the nominations.

If passed and signed into law, the bill would give the executive branch oversight over eight of the 11 seats on the council.

“Before you is a shift in power away from the Bar Commission, towards a more representative, balanced perspective of our bar membership,” Sen. Abby Lee, R-Fruitland, a co-sponsor, said during Thursday’s debate. “It also allows an elected official, who is accountable to the people for filling elected vacancies, to pick those individuals who sit on the judicial council.”

IDAHO JUDICIAL COUNCIL GROWS

Idaho’s seven-member council is made up of the chief justice of the Idaho Supreme Court; one district judge; two attorneys selected by the Idaho State Bar, and confirmed by the Idaho Senate; and three laypeople, with no specialized legal experience, who are appointed by the governor and also confirmed by the Senate.

House Bill 782 adds four people to the council: two more attorneys, a magistrate judge and a layperson. The governor will continue to appoint the lay members and also could reject the Idaho State Bar’s nominations with the new legislation.

The bill requires that attorney seats are held by lawyers only in civil or criminal practice areas, excluding general practitioners. Opponents said the change would bar many lawyers from sitting on the council.

Lawmakers told the Idaho Statesman that Republican leadership pressured their colleagues to pass the bill before the end of the session, likely Friday. Democrats and Republicans pushed back in debates.

“At a time when our citizens are looking for a transparent government, I think we need to instill faith in our government and the separation of powers,” Sen. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, said Thursday.

TIE TO JUDICIAL SALARY RAISES ‘DISRESPECTFUL’

Bill supporters said the process for filling judicial vacancies sidesteps elections and anoints incumbency on judges who often run unopposed after being appointed by the council. Sen. Jim Rice, R-Caldwell, said the Idaho Constitution establishes that the primary method for filling judicial positions should be “election, not selection.”

“In any place where there is a group of people who have any ability to determine what will happen, there are politics,” Rice said.

Others objected to the speed at which the bill moved through the Legislature. Sen. Patti Anne Lodge, R-Huston, said there hasn’t been enough input from the public and from stakeholders.

Lodge, whose husband is a retired judge, also criticized that judicial salary raises are tied to the legislation. Judges will receive raises ranging from 2% to 5% if the bill becomes law. Lodge called the move “disrespectful.”

“They are the third branch of government and should at least have the courtesy of having their salaries placed in a separate piece of legislation,” she said.

The governor will have five days to sign or veto the bill after he receives it from the Legislature.