SENATE BILL No. 262
An Act concerning courts; relating to additional district
magistrate positions; election filing requirements; jurors,
qualifications and questionnaires; amending K.S.A. 20-355, 25-205,
43-158 and 43-161 and repealing the existing sections.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. K.S.A. 20-355 is hereby amended
to read as follows: 20-
355. (a) On or before April 15 of every even-numbered year, the
supreme
court shall examine the need for more or less divisions or
district mag-
istrate judge positions of the district court in each
judicial district which
has not approved the proposition of nonpartisan selection of
district
judges of the district court, as provided in K.S.A. 20-2901,
and amend-
ments thereto, and, except that on or before
May 15, 1998, the supreme
court shall examine the need for more or less divisions or
district magis-
trate judge positions of the district court in each judicial
district which
has not approved the proposition of nonpartisan selection of
judges of the
district court. On or before May 15 of each year, the
supreme court shall
examine the need for more or less divisions or positions of
the district
court in judicial districts which have approved such proposition.
When-
ever the supreme court shall determine that in order to effectively
ex-
pedite the business of the district court in any judicial district
in this state,
the need exists for an additional district judge
of the district court and an
additional division of or position in such
court, the supreme court shall
so certify to the secretary of state, and where the need for such
additional
district judge of the district court and
division or position is in a judicial
district in which such proposition of nonpartisan selection of
district court
judges of the district court has been approved, such
certification also shall
be made to the chairperson of the district judicial nominating
commission
of such judicial district. Any additional division or
position so certified
shall be designated as the next numbered division or
position of such
court.
(b) Upon certification of an additional
district judge of the district
court and an additional division or position of the
district court in any
judicial district which has not approved the proposition of
nonpartisan
selection of district judges of the district
court, the first district judge of
the district court of such new division or position
shall be elected at the
general election held in November of the year in which the division
or
position is determined to be necessary and such judge shall
take office
on the second Monday in January of the following year. No judge of
any
such new division shall be appointed pending the first election to
fill such
office.
(c) Upon certification of an additional
district judge of the district
court and an additional division or position of the
district court in any
judicial district which has approved the proposition of nonpartisan
selec-
tion of district judges of the district
court, the additional division or po-
sition shall be created on July 15 of the year in which such
certification
is made, and the additional district judge shall be selected and
take office
in the manner prescribed by subsection (b) of K.S.A. 20-2913,
and
amendments thereto. The additional position shall be created on
July 1
of the year in which the position is approved, and the
additional district
magistrate judge shall be selected and take office in the manner
prescribed
by K.S.A. 20-2914 and amendments thereto.
(d) The supreme court shall determine the
county or judicial district
in which the newly created division or position shall be
placed.
(e) Any additional district judge or
district magistrate judge position
created by this section shall be considered a position created by
the su-
preme court and not a civil appointment to a state office pursuant
to
K.S.A. 46-234, and amendments thereto.
Sec. 2. K.S.A. 25-205 is hereby amended to
read as follows: 25-205.
(a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (h)
this section, the names
of candidates for national, state, county and township offices
shall be
printed upon the official primary ballot when each shall have
qualified to
become a candidate by one of the following methods and none other:
(1)
They shall have had filed in their behalf, not later than 12:00
noon, June
10, prior to such primary election, or if such date falls on
Saturday, Sunday
or a holiday, then before 12:00 noon of the next following day that
is not
a Saturday, Sunday or a holiday, nomination petitions, as provided
for in
this act, except that in 1998, candidates for judge or district
magistrate
judge of the district court for positions created in 1998 in
those judicial
districts that have not approved the proposition of nonpartisan
selection
of judges of the district court shall have filed in their
behalf, not later than
12:00 noon, July 1, 1998, nomination petitions, as provided for
in this act;
or (2) they shall have filed not later than the time for filing
nomination
petitions, as above provided, with the proper officer a declaration
of in-
tention to become a candidate, accompanied by the fee required by
law.
Such declaration shall be prescribed by the secretary of state.
(b) Nomination petitions shall be in
substantially the following form:
I, the undersigned, an elector of the county of
________, and state of Kansas, and
a duly registered voter, and a member of ______ party, hereby
nominate _______________,
who resides in the township of ________ (or at number ________ on
________
street, city of ________), in the county of ________ and state of
Kansas, as a
candidate for the office of (here specify the office) ________, to
be voted for at the
primary election to be held on the first Tuesday in August in
________, as representing
the principles of such party; and I further declare that I intend
to support the candidate
herein named and that I have not signed and will not sign any
nomination petition for any
other person, for such office at such primary election.
(HEADING)
| Name of |
Street Number |
Name of |
Date of |
| Signers. |
or Rural Route |
City. |
Signing. |
|
(as registered). |
All nomination petitions shall have substantially the
foregoing form,
written or printed at the top thereof. No signature shall be
counted unless
it is upon a sheet having such written or printed form at the top
thereof.
(c) Each signer of a nomination petition shall
sign but one such pe-
tition for the same office, and shall declare that such person
intends to
support the candidate therein named, and shall add to such person's
sig-
nature and residence, if in a city, by street and number (if any);
or, oth-
erwise by post-office address. No signature shall be counted unless
the
place of residence of the signer is clearly indicated and the date
of signing
given as herein required and if ditto marks are used to indicate
address
they shall be continuous and clearly made. Such sheets shall not be
cut
or pasted together.
(d) All signers of each separate nomination
petition shall reside in the
same county and election district of the office sought. The
affidavit de-
scribed in this paragraph of a qualified elector who resides in
such county
and election district or of the candidate shall be appended to each
petition
and shall contain, at the end of each set of documents carried by
each
circulator, a verification, signed by the circulator or the
candidate, to the
effect that such circulator or the candidate personally witnessed
the sign-
ing of the petition by each person whose name appears thereon.
The
person making such affidavit shall be duly registered to vote.
(e) Except as otherwise provided in subsection
(g), nomination peti-
tions shall be signed:
(1) If for a state officer elected on a
statewide basis or for the office
of United States senator, by voters equal in number to not less
than 1%
of the total of the current voter registration of the party
designated in the
state as compiled by the office of the secretary of state;
(2) If for a state or national officer elected
on less than a statewide
basis, by voters equal in number to not less than 2% of the total
of the
current voter registration of the party designated in such district
as com-
piled by the office of the secretary of state, except that for the
office of
district magistrate judge, by not less than 2% of the total of the
current
voter registration of the party designated in the county in which
such
office is to be filled as certified to the secretary of state in
accordance
with K.S.A. 25-3302, and amendments thereto;
(3) If for a county office, by voters equal in
number to not less than
3% of the total of the current voter registration of the party
designated
in such district or county as compiled by the county election
officer and
certified to the secretary of state in accordance with K.S.A.
25-3302, and
amendments thereto; and
(4) If for a township office, by voters equal in
number to not less than
3% of the total of the current voter registration of the party
designated
in such township as compiled by the county election officer and
certified
to the secretary of state in accordance with K.S.A. 25-3302, and
amend-
ments thereto.
(f) Subject to the requirements of K.S.A.
25-202, and amendments
thereto, any political organization filing nomination petitions for
a major-
ity of the state or county offices, as provided in this act, shall
have a
separate primary election ballot as a political party and, upon
receipt of
such nomination petitions, the respective officers shall prepare a
separate
state and county ballot for such new party in their respective
counties or
districts thereof in the same manner as is provided for existing
parties.
(g) (1) In the year 1992, if new boundary lines
are defined and dis-
tricts established in the manner prescribed by law on or after the
effective
date of this act and on or before May 10, 1992, for the offices of
repre-
sentative in the United States congress, senator and representative
in the
legislature of the state of Kansas, and member of the state board
of ed-
ucation, nomination petitions for nomination to such offices shall
be
signed by voters equal in number to not less than 1% of the total
of the
current voter registration of the party designated in the district
as com-
piled by the office of the secretary of state.
(2) In the year 1992, if new boundary lines are
defined and districts
established in the manner prescribed by law on or after May 11,
1992,
nomination petitions for nomination to the following offices shall
be
signed by registered voters of the party designated in the district
equal
in number to not less than the following:
(A) For the office of
representative
in the United States congress |
1,000 registered
voters; |
(B) for the office of
member of the
state board of education |
300 registered
voters; |
(C) for the office of
state
senator |
75 registered voters;
and |
(D) for the office of
state
representative |
25 registered
voters. |
(h) (1) In the year 1992, if new boundary
lines are defined and dis-
tricts established in the manner prescribed by law for the offices
of rep-
resentative in the United States congress, senator and
representative in
the legislature of the state of Kansas, and member of the state
board of
education, on or before June 12, 1992, the deadline for filing
nomination
petitions and declarations of intention to become a candidate for
such
office, accompanied by the fee required by law, shall be June 24,
1992.
(2) In the year 1992, if new boundary lines are
defined and districts
established in the manner prescribed by law for the offices of
represen-
tative in the United States congress, senator and representative in
the
legislature of the state of Kansas, and member of the state board
of ed-
ucation, on or after June 13, 1992, the deadline for filing
nomination
petitions and declarations of intention to become a candidate for
such
office, accompanied by the fee required by law, shall be July 14,
1992.
Sec. 3. On and after July 1, 1998, K.S.A.
43-158 is hereby amended
to read as follows: 43-158. The following persons shall be excused
from
jury service: (a) Persons unable to read, write,
and understand the English
language with a degree of proficiency sufficient to fill
out respond to a
jury questionnaire form prepared by the commissioner;
(b) persons under adjudication of incompetency;
and
(c) persons who within ten (10)
10 years immediately preceding have
been convicted of or pleaded guilty, or nolo contendere, to
an indictment
or information charging a felony.
Sec. 4. On and after July 1, 1998, K.S.A.
43-161 is hereby amended
to read as follows: 43-161. Each jury commissioner may require any
per-
son summoned for jury duty whose name has been
selected for a jury list
prepared in accordance with the provisions of K.S.A. 43-162 and
amend-
ments thereto to answer in writing such questions as
he the commissioner
may address to such person, touching his
relating to such person's name,
age, residence, occupation and qualifications as a juror, with a
view to the
due and faithful jury service of such person; and
also all such questions
as to involving similar matters
touching relating to all persons in
his
household living in such person's
residence.
Any such person summoned for jury duty
who shall fail or refuse whose
name has been selected for a jury list who fails or refuses
to answer such
questions in writing, and signing
his such person's name thereto, shall
be
cited for contempt of court.
Any such person summoned for jury
duty whose name has been selected
for a jury list who shall willfully or
corruptly make makes false answers
to such questions put to him such person by
the jury commissioner shall
be deemed to be guilty of a class A
nonperson misdemeanor.
Sec. 5. K.S.A. 20-355 and 25-205 are hereby
repealed.
Sec. 6. On and after July 1, 1998, K.S.A.
43-158 and 43-161 are
hereby repealed.
Sec. 7. This act shall take effect and be
in force from and after its
publication in the Kansas register.
I hereby certifiy that the above Bill originated in the
Senate, and passed that body
__________________________________
Senate adopted
Conference Committe Report __________________________________
| __________________________________ |
| __________________________________ |
Passed the House
as amended __________________________
House adopted
Conference Committee Report __________________________
| __________________________________ |
| __________________________________ |
Chief Clerk of the House.
|
Approved __________________________
| __________________________________ |