HB 164 - MD Constitutional Amendment for Term Limits

[ShallNotInfringe]

Sponsors: Delegates Hough, Afzali, Arentz, Frank, George, Glass, Jacobs, Krebs, McComas, McDermott, McMillan, Norman, Otto, Parrott, Schuh, Schulz, and Szeliga

FOR the purpose of proposing an amendment to the Maryland Constitution to impose a certain limit on the number of consecutive terms that a person may serve in the office of Senator or Delegate in the General Assembly; making stylistic changes; and submitting this amendment to the qualified voters of the State of Maryland for their adoption or rejection.

http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2014RS/bills/hb/hb0164f.pdf

Three terms and out!

 

[Mooseman]

I love it but they will not vote themselves out of a job.

 

[mxrider]

 

[Mr H]

I love it but they will not vote themselves out of a job.

As a constitution change, it goes to ballot, IIRC

 

[MJD438]

As a constitution change, it goes to ballot, IIRC

Only after the GA approves it, IIRC.

I'll have to look it up again, once I get off of my ever present conference calls this evening.

 

[BeoBill]

 

[Engine4]

This would be great. I'd also like to see one allowing recall elections.

 

[-Z/28-]

YES!

Now only if congress would do the same.

 

[elwojo]

Why limit it to only three consecutive terms? So you can take 6 years on, 2 off, and then get back on for 6 more? Is there precedent for this in other states? It's definitely a step in the right direction - but I am curious about that decision...

It would have to go to a popular vote - and likely after GA approval:

SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That the aforegoing section
proposed as an amendment to the Maryland Constitution shall be submitted to the
qualified voters of the State at the next general election to be held in November 2014
for their adoption or rejection pursuant to Article XIV of the Maryland Constitution.
At that general election, the vote on this proposed amendment to the Constitution
shall be by ballot, and upon each ballot there shall be printed the words “For the
Constitutional Amendment” and “Against the Constitutional Amendment,” as now
provided by law. Immediately after the election, all returns shall be made to the
Governor of the vote for and against the proposed amendment, as directed by Article
XIV of the Maryland Constitution, and further proceedings had in accordance with
Article XIV.

 

[Mr H]

Only after the GA approves it, IIRC.

I'll have to look it up again, once I get off of my ever present conference calls this evening.

Pretty sure you're right. I'm just going off the thought that IMO it has a chance to pass.

 

[El_flasko]

I love it but they will not vote themselves out of a job.

Agreed. Term limits should be standard from the local to the federal levels. Politicians spend most of their time at their jobs trying to keep their jobs vs doing their jobs. That sentence was a serious over use of the word "their."

Carry on...

 

[MJD438]

I may have to try to make it for the hearing, if one is scheduled. I will love to hear one of the D's in the MGA make a 1A claim for why we cannot do this...

 

[MDFF2008]

It's interesting there are D co-sponsors.

 

[Fox123]

Not going to pass, those in power only want more power. Not going to give up what they have.

 

[Seagrave1963]

Guess letting the voters decide is out of the question

 

[ShallNotInfringe]

I may have to try to make it for the hearing, if one is scheduled. I will love to hear one of the D's in the MGA make a 1A claim for why we cannot do this...

Might be worth it just to hear the arguments.

Hope he gets the other bill through that allows recording of all hearings. Would provide some interesting sound bites for election fodder.

 

[ShallNotInfringe]

Why limit it to only three consecutive terms? So you can take 6 years on, 2 off, and then get back on for 6 more? Is there precedent for this in other states? It's definitely a step in the right direction - but I am curious about that decision...

It would have to go to a popular vote - and likely after GA approval:

Aren't both delegate and senator terms 4 years? So that would be 12 years for either position.

 

[ShallNotInfringe]

Only after the GA approves it, IIRC.

I'll have to look it up again, once I get off of my ever present conference calls this evening.

AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION.

SECTION 1. The General Assembly may propose Amendments to this Constitution; provided that each Amendment shall be embraced in a separate bill, embodying the Article or Section, as the same will stand when amended and passed by three-fifths of all the members elected to each of the two Houses, by yeas and nays, to be entered on the Journals with the proposed Amendment. The requirement in this section that an amendment proposed by the General Assembly shall be embraced in a separate bill shall not be construed or applied to prevent the General Assembly from (1) proposing in one bill a series of amendments to the Constitution of Maryland for the general purpose of removing or correcting constitutional provisions which are obsolete, inaccurate, invalid, unconstitutional, or duplicative; or (2) embodying in a single Constitutional amendment one or more Articles of the Constitution so long as that Constitutional amendment embraces only a single subject. The bill or bills proposing amendment or amendments shall be publicized, either by publishing, by order of the Governor, in at least two newspapers, in each County, where so many may be published, and where not more than one may be published, then in that newspaper, and in three newspapers published in the City of Baltimore, once a week for four weeks, or as otherwise ordered by the Governor in a manner provided by law, immediately preceding the next ensuing general election, at which the proposed amendment or amendments shall be submitted, in a form to be prescribed by the General Assembly, to the qualified voters of the State for adoption or rejection. The votes cast for and against said proposed amendment or amendments, severally, shall be returned to the Governor, in the manner prescribed in other cases, and if it shall appear to the Governor that a majority of the votes cast at said election on said amendment or amendments, severally, were cast in favor thereof, the Governor shall, by his proclamation, declare the said amendment or amendments having received said majority of votes, to have been adopted by the people of Maryland as part of the Constitution thereof, and thenceforth said amendment or amendments shall be part of the said Constitution. If the General Assembly determines that a proposed Constitutional amendment affects only one county or the City of Baltimore, the proposed amendment shall be part of the Constitution if it receives a majority of the votes cast in the State and in the affected county or City of Baltimore, as the case may be. When two or more amendments shall be submitted to the voters of this State at the same election, they shall be so submitted as that each amendment shall be voted on separately (amended by Chapter 476, Acts of 1943, ratified Nov. 7, 1944; Chapter 367, Acts of 1972, ratified Nov. 7, 1972; Chapter 679, Acts of 1977, and Chapter 975, Acts of 1978, ratified Nov. 7, 1978 ).

 

[fabsroman]

Not going to pass, those in power only want more power. Not going to give up what they have.

See, this is the kind of stuff that we can use against those in power. I have plenty of liberal friends/clients (I know, feel sorry for me) and they are all in favor of term limits. There isn't a single person that I have spoken to about term limits that isn't completely for them, both at the state and federal level.

Get the Amendment out there, see how people vote, then make sure that everybody throughout the state knows whether their representatives voted for or against term limits.

There has to be common ground that we as Marylanders can agree on, and I think this is one of those spots.

 

[Jim12]

Yes!

Incidentally, when debated in MoCo years ago, incumbents (of course) argued that the best '"term limit" was the ballot box. That dodges, and changes the subject from the power and advantages of incumbency, but it sometimes works, as illustrated there.