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Pennsylvania State Senate
04/26/2024 05:58 AM
Pennsylvania State Senate
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=S&SPick=20150&cosponId=15606
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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda

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Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2015 - 2016 Regular Session

MEMORANDUM

Posted: December 5, 2014 09:45 AM
From: Senator Stewart J. Greenleaf
To: All Senate members
Subject: Judges retirement age
 
I am reintroducing legislation proposing an amendment to Pennsylvania’s constitution eliminating the requirement under Article V, section 16(b) that “Justices, judges and justices of the peace [magisterial district judges] shall be retired on the last day of the calendar year in which they attain the age of 70 years.”

Last session legislation was passed to increase the retirement age from 70 years to 75 years. In order for the constitution to be amended, the General Assembly must pass identical legislation during this session. Arguably the mandatory retirement age is a form of age discrimination not applied to other public officials. In addition, under Article V, section 18 of the State constitution, a justice or judge may be removed for “mental or physical disability” making the age requirement redundant.

If the proposed amendment is adopted, justices and judges could serve until age 75 and they are subject to retention elections or, in the case of magisterial district judges, partisan elections.


Introduced as SB207