GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1999

H	1 

HOUSE BILL 1033

Short Title:  Appellate Judge Elections.	(Public)

─────────────────────────────────────── 
Sponsors: Representative Culpepper.

─────────────────────────────────────── 
Referred to:  Judiciary IV.

─────────────────────────────────────── 

April 14, 1999

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO PROVIDE THAT THE INITIAL ELECTION OF AN APPELLATE JUDGE SHALL CONTINUE AS CURRENT, BUT SUBSEQUENT ELECTIONS FOR THAT JUSTICE OR JUDGE TO THE SAME OFFICE SHALL BE BY NONPARTISAN RETENTION ELECTION.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.   Chapter 7A of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article to read:
“ARTICLE 1A.
"Retention Elections.
"§ 7A-4.1.  Retention elections.
(a)	If the Chief Justice or an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court or a Judge of the Court of Appeals was appointed to that office, then the next election for that office shall be by partisan ballot as otherwise provided by this Chapter and Chapter 163 of the General Statutes.
(b)	A Chief Justice or Associate Justice of the Supreme Court or Judge of the Court of Appeals who was elected to that office at the most recent election, whether by partisan election or by retention election, who desires to continue in office shall be subject to approval by nonpartisan ballot at the general election immediately preceding the expiration of the term, by a majority of votes cast on the issue of the justice's or judge's retention. Voting in a retention election on the Chief Justice, Associate Justices, and Judges of the Appellate Division shall be the qualified voters of the whole State.
(c)	A person subject to subsection (b) of this section shall indicate the desire to continue in office by filing a notice to that effect with the State Board of Elections no later than 12:00 noon on the first business day of July in the year prior to the election.  The notice shall be on a form approved by the State Board of Elections.  Notice can be withdrawn at any time prior to December 15 of that year.  If no retention notice is filed, or if it is filed and timely withdrawn, then a partisan election shall be held the next year to elect a successor.
(d)	Retention elections shall be conducted and canvassed in accordance with rules of the State Board of Elections in the same general manner as general elections under Chapter 163 of the General Statutes, except that the retention election is nonpartisan.  The form of the ballot shall be determined by the State Board of Elections.
(e)	Retention elections shall be placed at the top of the ballot above all other elections or matters for decision, whether partisan, nonpartisan, or otherwise.
(f)	If a person who has filed a notice calling a retention election dies or is removed from office prior to the time that the ballots are printed, the retention election is cancelled.  If a person who has filed a notice calling a retention election dies or is removed from office after the ballots are printed, the State Board of Elections may cancel the election if it determines that the ballots can be reprinted without significant expense.  If the ballots cannot be reprinted, then the results of the election shall be ineffective.
"§ 7A-4.2.  Failure to retain.
If the voters fail to approve the retention in office of a Chief Justice, Associate Justice, or Judge of the Appellate Division, the office shall become vacant at the end of the term of office, the incumbent shall not hold over, and it shall be filled by appointment as provided by law until the next general election when a successor shall be elected for a full term as provided by G.S. 163-9.
"§ 7A-4.3.  Governor to issue commissions to justices and judges.
When a judge is retained in office by vote of the people, the Governor shall issue a commission attesting that fact, which the Governor shall issue upon receipt of a certification by the Secretary of State of the results of the election."
Section 2.  G.S. 163-140(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	Kinds of General Election Ballots; Right to Combine. – For purposes of general elections, there shall be seven kinds of official ballots entitled:
(1)	Ballot for presidential electors
(2)	Ballot for United States Senator
(3)	Ballot for member of the United States House of Representatives
(4)	State ballot
(5)	County ballot
(6)	Repealed by Session Laws 1973, c. 793, s. 56
(7)	Ballot for constitutional amendments and other propositions submitted to the people
(8)	Judicial ballot for superior court.
Use of official ballots shall be limited to the purposes indicated by their titles. The printing on all ballots shall be plain and legible but, unless large type is specified by this section, type larger than 10-point shall not be used in printing ballots. All general election ballots shall be prepared in such a way as to leave sufficient blank space beneath each name printed thereon in which a voter may conveniently write the name of any person for whom he may desire to vote.
Unless prohibited by this section, the board of elections, State or county, charged by law with printing ballots may, in its discretion, combine any two or more official ballots. Whenever two or more ballots are combined, the voting instructions for the State ballot set out in subsection (b)(4) of this section shall be used, except that if the two ballots being combined do not contain a multi-seat race, then the second sentence of instruction b. shall not appear on the ballot.
Contests in the general election for seats in the State House of Representatives and State Senate shall be on ballots that are separate from ballots containing non-legislative contests, except where the voting system used makes separation of ballots impractical. State House and State Senate contests shall be on the same ballot, unless one is a single-seat contest and the other a multi-seat contest.
	All candidates in a partisan election for the Appellate Division shall appear on the same ballot.”
Section 3.  G.S. 7A-10(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	The Supreme Court shall consist of a Chief Justice and six associate justices, elected as provided by Article 1A of this Chapter. Before entering upon the duties of his office, each justice shall take an oath of office. Four justices shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of the business of the court. Sessions of the court shall be held in the city of Raleigh, and scheduled by rule of court so as to discharge expeditiously the court's business."
Section 4.  G.S. 7A-16 reads as rewritten:
"§ 7A-16.  Creation and organization.
The Court of Appeals shall consist of 12 judges, elected as provided in Article 1A of this Chapter.  The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall designate one of the judges as Chief Judge to serve in such capacity at the pleasure of the Chief Justice.  Before entering upon the duties of his office, a judge of the Court of Appeals shall take the oath of office prescribed for a judge of the General Court of Justice.
The Court of Appeals shall sit in panels of three judges each. The Chief Judge insofar as practicable shall assign the members to panels in such fashion that each member sits a substantially equal number of times with each other member. He shall preside over the panel of which he is a member, and shall designate the presiding judge of the other panel or panels.
Three judges shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of the business of the court, except as may be provided in G.S. 7A-32.
In the event the Chief Judge is unable, on account of absence or temporary incapacity, to perform the duties placed upon him as Chief Judge, the Chief Justice shall appoint an acting Chief Judge from the other judges of the Court, to temporarily discharge the duties of Chief Judge."
Section 5.  G.S. 163-107(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	Fee Schedule. – At the time of filing a notice of candidacy, including candidacy for retention election under G.S. 7A-4.1, each candidate shall pay to the board of elections with which he files under the provisions of G.S. 163-106 a filing fee for the office he seeks in the amount specified in the following tabulation: 
Office Sought	Amount of Filing Fee

Governor 	One percent (1%) of the annual
	  salary of the office sought
Lieutenant Governor 	One percent (1%) of the annual
	  salary of the office sought
All State executive offices 	One percent (1%) of the annual
	  salary of the office sought
All Justices, Judges, and   	One percent (1%) of the annual
  District Attorneys of the	  salary of the office sought
  General Court of Justice
  other than superior court judge
United States Senator 	One percent (1%) of the annual
	  salary of the office sought
Members of the United States 	One percent (1%) of the annual
  House of Representatives 	  salary of the office sought
State Senator 	One percent (1%) of the annual
	  salary of the office sought
Member of the State House of 	One percent (1%) of the annual
  Representatives	  salary of the office sought
All county offices not 	One percent (1%) of the annual
  compensated by fees	  salary of the office sought
County commissioners, if 	Ten dollars ($10.00)
  compensated entirely by fees
Members of county board of 	Five dollars ($5.00)
  education, if compensated 
  entirely by fees
Sheriff, if compensated 	Forty dollars ($40.00), plus one
  entirely by fees 	  percent (1%) of the income of the
	  office above four thousand
	  dollars ($4,000)
Clerk of superior court, if 	Forty dollars ($40.00), plus one
  compensated entirely by fees 	  percent (1%) of the income of the
	  office above four thousand
	  dollars ($4,000)
Register of deeds, if 	Forty dollars ($40.00), plus one
  compensated entirely by fees 	  percent (1%) of the income of the
	  office above four thousand
	  dollars ($4,000)
Any other county office, if 	Twenty dollars ($20.00), plus one
  compensated entirely by fees	  percent (1%) of the income of the
	  office above two thousand dollars
	  ($2,000)
All county offices compensated 	One percent (1%) of the first
	  partly by salary and partly  	  annual salary to be received
  by fees	  (exclusive of fees)."Section 6.  This act is effective when it becomes law.