Alabama Lieutenant Governor Amendment (2018)
| Alabama Lieutenant Governor Amendment | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 6, 2018 | |
| Topic State executive official measures | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
The Alabama Lieutenant Governor Amendment was not on the ballot in Alabama as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 6, 2018.
The measure would have removed the lieutenant governor as president of the Alabama Senate, with a right to vote in the event of a tie. The measure would have allowed state senators to select a president of the Senate.[1]
The measure would have defined the lieutenant governor as having one constitutional task – to succeed the governor in the line of succession. The measure would have also made the lieutenant governor's compensation 75 percent of what is paid to the governor.[1]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title would have been as follows:[1]
| “ | Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, removing the duty of the Lieutenant Governor to serve as the President of the Senate and to perform other legislative responsibilities; vesting these legislative duties in the President of the Senate, who shall be elected by the members of the Senate; specifying the sole duty of the Lieutenant Governor is to succeed to the Office of Governor under certain existing conditions; and providing that the annual salary of the Lieutenant Governor is an amount equal to 75 percent of the annual salary of the Governor.[2] | ” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article V, Alabama Constitution
The measure would have amended Section 117 of Article V of the Alabama Constitution. The following underlined text would have been added, and struck-through text would have been deleted:[1]
Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.
(a) The governor and lieutenant governor shall each be at least thirty years of age when elected, and shall have been citizens of the United States ten years and resident citizens of this state at least seven years next before the date of their election. The lieutenant governor shall be ex officio president of the senate, but shall have no right to vote except in the event of a tie.
(b) The sole duty of the Lieutenant Governor is to succeed to the Office of the Governor as specified in Section 127. The Lieutenant Governor shall not serve as President of the Senate and shall hold no right to vote in the event of a tie. The Lieutenant Governor shall hold no duties, responsibilities, or powers regarding the Legislative Department.
(c) The members of the Senate, from time to time, shall elect from its membership a President of the Senate. Those legislative duties, responsibilities, and powers previously vested in the Lieutenant Governor by this constitution or by law are vested in the President of the Senate. The President Pro Tempore of the Senate, as provided in Amendment 57 of this constitution, shall preside over the deliberations of the Senate in the absence of the President of the Senate.
(d) Portions of Section 118 of this constitution to the contrary notwithstanding, the annual compensation paid to the Lieutenant Governor shall be an amount equal to 75 percent of the annual salary, as adjusted from time to time, paid to the Governor. The difference in salary specified in this amendment may not be altered by law.[2]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Alabama Constitution
In Alabama, a constitutional amendment must be passed by a 60 percent vote in each house of the state legislature during one legislative session.
Sen. Gerald Dial (R-13) introduced the amendment into the legislature as Senate Bill 371. On May 11, 2017, the Alabama Senate approved the measure 22 to 6 with 7 senators not voting. The measure was referred to the House Constitution, Campaigns and Elections Committee, where it never received a vote.[3]
The 2017 legislative session was expected to run from February 7, 2017, through May 19, 2017.
Senate vote
May 11, 2017[3]
| Alabama SB 371 Senate Vote | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
 Yes | 22 | 78.57% | ||
| No | 6 | 21.43% | ||
| Partisan breakdown of Senate votes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party Affiliation | Yes | No | Abstain | Total |
| Democrat | 5 | 0 | 3 | 8 |
| Republican | 16 | 6 | 4 | 26 |
| Independent | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 22 | 6 | 7 | 35 |
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Alabama Legislature, "Senate Bill 371," accessed May 15, 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 3.0 3.1 Alabama Legislature, "SB 371 Overview," accessed May 15, 2017
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