Bill to establish judicial compensation commission approved by Connecticut legislative committee
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March 27, 2012
Hartford, Connecticut: The Connecticut House judiciary committee, on March 26, approved a bill that would create a new "Commission on Judicial Compensation". The commission would be comprised of nine members. Every four years, it would make recommendations regarding judicial pay raises to the governor, General Assembly, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The bill would shift some of the decision-making regarding judicial salaries from the Legislature to this new commission.
Those in favor of the change include Chief Justice Chase Rogers, who stated, "I am concerned, however, that if we do not establish an effective process to address compensation, we will be unable to continue attracting the best and the brightest, which will negatively impact decisions from the bench and, ultimately, the people we serve."[1]
There were few opponents to the bill in the judiciary committee, which cast a 34-8 vote in favor. However, Kevin Rennie, a lawyer and former Connecticut legislator, voiced the concerns of the opposition in an opinion piece for the Hartford Courant two days before the vote was cast. In it, he argued, "Even with the proposed commission meeting in public, it becomes an insiders' game with winks and nods exchanged while legislators tell the public the decision is out of their hands."[2]
Footnotes
Federal courts:
Second Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Connecticut • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Connecticut
State courts:
Connecticut Supreme Court • Connecticut Appellate Court • Connecticut Superior Court • Connecticut Probate Courts
State resources:
Courts in Connecticut • Connecticut judicial elections • Judicial selection in Connecticut
