SF 479

as introduced - 81st Legislature (1999 - 2000) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to elections; providing term limits for state 
  1.3             legislators and constitutional officers; proposing an 
  1.4             amendment to the Minnesota Constitution, article IV, 
  1.5             section 6; and article V, sections 2 and 4. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT.] 
  1.8      Subdivision 1.  An amendment to the Minnesota Constitution 
  1.9   is proposed to the people.  If the amendment is adopted, article 
  1.10  IV, section 6, will read: 
  1.11     Sec. 6.  Senators and representatives shall be qualified 
  1.12  voters of the state, and shall have resided one year in the 
  1.13  state and six months immediately preceding the election in the 
  1.14  district from which elected.  A person may not be elected more 
  1.15  than three times to the office of senator or five times to the 
  1.16  office of representative.  Each house shall be the judge of the 
  1.17  election returns and eligibility of its own members.  The 
  1.18  legislature shall prescribe by law the manner for taking 
  1.19  evidence in cases of contested seats in either house. 
  1.20     article V, section 2, will read: 
  1.21     Sec. 2.  The term of office for the governor and lieutenant 
  1.22  governor is four years and until a successor is chosen and 
  1.23  qualified.  Each shall have attained the age of 25 years and, 
  1.24  shall have been a bona fide resident of the state for one year 
  1.25  next preceding his election, and shall be a citizen of the 
  2.1   United States.  A person may not be elected more than twice to 
  2.2   the office of governor nor more than twice to the office of 
  2.3   lieutenant governor. 
  2.4      and article V, section 4, will read: 
  2.5      Sec. 4.  The term of office of the secretary of state, 
  2.6   attorney general and state auditor is four years and until a 
  2.7   successor is chosen and qualified.  A person may not be elected 
  2.8   more than twice to the office of secretary of state, attorney 
  2.9   general, or state auditor.  The duties and salaries of the 
  2.10  executive officers shall be prescribed by law. 
  2.11     Sec. 2.  [SUBMISSION TO PEOPLE.] 
  2.12     The proposed amendment must be submitted to the people at 
  2.13  the 2000 general election.  The question submitted must be: 
  2.14     "Shall the Minnesota Constitution be amended to place 
  2.15  limits on the number of terms of office of state legislators and 
  2.16  constitutional officers? 
  2.17                                     Yes .......
  2.18                                     No ........"
  2.19     Elections before 2000 must be disregarded in determining 
  2.20  the limits imposed by the amendment.