PRIOR PASSAGE - NONE
PRINTER'S NO. 2325
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1607
Session of
2015
INTRODUCED BY GIBBONS, KIM, TRUITT, McNEILL, SANKEY, GILLEN,
MAHONEY AND MURT, OCTOBER 8, 2015
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, OCTOBER 8, 2015
A JOINT RESOLUTION
Proposing separate and distinct amendments to the Constitution
of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, further providing for
terms of members and for the Legislative Reapportionment
Commission.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby resolves as follows:
Section 1. The following separate and distinct amendments to
the Constitution of Pennsylvania are proposed in accordance with
Article XI:
(1) That section 3 of Article II be amended to read:
§ 3. Terms of members.
[Senators shall be elected for the term of four years and
Representatives for the term of two years.]
(a) Senators shall be elected for the term of six years. No
person shall hold the office of Senator for a period of longer
than two successive terms of six years. Terms of Senators shall
be considered successive unless separated by a period of six or
more years. Representatives shall be elected for the term of
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four years. No person shall hold the office of Representative
for a period longer than three successive terms of four years.
Terms of Representatives shall be considered successive unless
separated by a period of four or more years.
(b) In determining the eligibility of an individual to hold
office in accordance with subsection (a):
(1) Time spent in office in fulfillment of a term to which
another person was first elected shall not be considered,
provided that a period of at least six years for Senators and at
least four years for Representatives passed between the time, if
any, the individual previously held that office and the time the
individual is elected to fulfill the unexpired term.
(2) A person who is elected to office in a regularly
scheduled general election and resigns prior to the completion
of the term for which the person was elected shall be considered
to have served the full term in that office.
(c) Senators elected at the general election in 2014 and
thereafter shall serve a six-year term. Senators now elected and
those whose terms are unexpired shall represent the districts in
which they reside until the end of the terms for which they were
elected.
(d) Representatives in odd-numbered districts elected at the
general election in 2014 shall serve a four-year term, and
Representatives in even-numbered districts elected at the
general election in 2014 shall serve a two-year term.
Representatives in even-numbered districts elected at the
general election in 2016 shall serve a four-year term.
(2) That section 17(f) of Article II be amended to read:
§ 17. Legislative Reapportionment Commission.
* * *
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(f) Any district which does not include the residence from
which a member of the Senate or House of Representatives was
elected whether or not scheduled for election at the next
general election shall elect a Senator or Representative at such
election.
* * *
Section 2. The provisions of this resolution apply only to
terms served by members of the General Assembly after the first
election cycle following the ratification of this constitutional
amendment and thereafter.
Section 3. (a) Upon the first passage by the General
Assembly of these proposed constitutional amendments, the
Secretary of the Commonwealth shall proceed immediately to
comply with the advertising requirements of section 1 of Article
XI of the Constitution of Pennsylvania and shall transmit the
required advertisements to two newspapers in every county in
which such newspapers are published in sufficient time after
passage of these proposed constitutional amendments.
(b) Upon the second passage by the General Assembly of these
proposed constitutional amendments, the Secretary of the
Commonwealth shall proceed immediately to comply with the
advertising requirements of section 1 of Article XI of the
Constitution of Pennsylvania and shall transmit the required
advertisements to two newspapers in every county in which such
newspapers are published in sufficient time after passage of
these proposed constitutional amendments. The Secretary of the
Commonwealth shall submit the proposed constitutional amendment
under section 1(1) to the qualified electors of this
Commonwealth as a ballot question and the proposed
constitutional amendment under section 1(2) to the electors of
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this Commonwealth as a separate ballot question at the first
primary, general or municipal election which meets the
requirements of and is in conformance with section 1 of Article
XI of the Constitution of Pennsylvania and which occurs at least
three months after the proposed constitutional amendments are
passed by the General Assembly.
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