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New Hampshire Increase Mandatory Judicial Retirement Age Amendment (2024)

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New Hampshire Increase Mandatory Judicial Retirement Age Amendment
Flag of New Hampshire.png
Election date
November 5, 2024
Topic
State judiciary
Status
Defeatedd Defeated
Type
Constitutional amendment		Origin
State legislature

The New Hampshire Increase Mandatory Retirement Age for Judges Amendment was on the ballot in New Hampshire as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 5, 2024.[1] The ballot measure was defeated.

A "yes" vote supported increasing the mandatory judicial retirement age from 70 to 75.

A "no" vote opposed increasing the mandatory judicial retirement age from 70 to 75.


Election results

The constitutional amendment needed to receive a two-thirds vote to be approved.

New Hampshire Increase Mandatory Judicial Retirement Age Amendment

Result Votes Percentage
Yes 452,307 65.60%

Defeated No

237,221 34.40%
Results are officially certified.
Source


Overview

How would this measure have amended the New Hampshire Constitution?

See also: Text of measure

This measure would have amended the constitution to say that no person over the age of 75 can serve as judge in any court in New Hampshire. The previous mandatory judicial retirement age in New Hampshire was 70.[1]

Do other states have mandatory retirement ages for judges?

See also: Mandatory retirement age by state

As of 2024, 31 states and the District of Columbia set mandatory retirement ages. In 2003, Vermont established the highest mandatory retirement age at 90 years old.[2]

How did this amendment get on the ballot?

See also: Path to the ballot

For a constitutional amendment to appear on the ballot in New Hampshire by the state legislature, a 60% majority vote is needed in each legislative chamber of the New Hampshire General Court.[3]

The amendment was introduced as Constitutional Amendment 6 to the New Hampshire General Court on December 28, 2022. It passed the New Hampshire House of Representatives by 321-27 on March 10, 2023. The amendment then passed the New Hampshire State Senate by 22-1 on March 30, 2023.[3]

Text of measure

Ballot title

The official ballot title was as follows:[1]

“ Are you in favor of amending article 78 of the second part of the constitution to read as follows:

[Art.] 78. [Judges and Sheriffs, When Disqualified by Age.] No person shall hold the office of sheriff of any county, after the person has attained the age of seventy years. No person shall hold the office of judge of any court after the person has attained the age of seventy-five years. [4]

”

Constitutional changes

See also: Part Second, New Hampshire Constitution

The ballot measure would have amended Article 78, Part Second of the New Hampshire Constitution. The following underlined text would have been added and struck-through text would have been deleted:[1]

Text of Article 78: Judges and Sheriffs, When Disqualified by Age

No person shall hold the office of judge of any court, or judge of probate, or sheriff of any county, after he the person has attained the age of seventy years. No person shall hold the office of judge of any court after the person has attained the age of seventy-five years.[4]

Readability score

See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2024

Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.

The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 7, and the FRE is 68. The word count for the ballot title is 69.


Support

Supporters

Officials

Arguments

  • Rep. Robert J. Lynn: "At that time the average life expectancy, believe it or not, was 38 so there weren't a whole lot of judges reaching that age back then. The current life expectancy average age is 76.4 years."
  • Sen. Donna Soucy: "Limiting people in one branch of government isn't helpful and this would be an important change for us to make in the Constitution."

Opposition

Opponents

Ballotpedia did not locate a campaign in opposition to the ballot measure.

Campaign finance

See also: Campaign finance requirements for New Hampshire ballot measures

Ballotpedia did not identify any committees registered in support of or opposition to the measure. [5]

Cash Contributions In-Kind Contributions Total Contributions Cash Expenditures Total Expenditures
Support $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Oppose $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Total $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00

Background

Mandatory retirement age by state

See also: Mandatory retirement

Mandatory retirement is the compulsory retirement of judges who have reached a specific age determined by a state's constitution. As of 2023, 31 states and the District of Columbia have set mandatory retirement ages. In 2003, Vermont established the highest mandatory retirement age at 90 years old.[2]


List of states

State Mandatory retirement age Additional information
Alabama 70[6] Judges may finish the final term during which they turn 70.[6]
Alaska 70[7]
Arizona 70[8][9]
Arkansas Judges who do not retire at 70 lose all earned retirement benefits.[10] No retirement age; however, judges lose their earned retirement benefits if they choose to seek re-election past age 70.[11]
California - No retirement age
Colorado 72[12]
Connecticut 70[13]
Delaware - No retirement age
District of Columbia 74[14]
Florida 75[15] Judges may finish the final term if more than one-half has been served at age 75.[15]
Georgia - No retirement age
Hawaii 70[16]
Idaho - No retirement age
Illinois - Used to be 75, but law was struck down by Illinois Supreme Court in 2009[17][18]
Indiana 75[19] No limit for superior court and county court judges.[20]
Iowa 72[21]
Kansas 75[22] Judges may finish the final term during which they turn 75[22]
Kentucky - No retirement age
Louisiana 70[23] Judges may finish the final term during which they turn 70[23]
Maine - No retirement age
Maryland 70[24]
Massachusetts 70[25]
Michigan 70[26] Judges may finish the final term during which they turn 70.[26]
Minnesota 70[27] Judges must retire the last day of the month in which they have turned 70[27]
Mississippi - No retirement age
Missouri 70/75[28][29] Judges other than municipal judges must retire at 70.[28] Municipal judges must retire at 75.[29]
Montana - No retirement age
Nebraska - No retirement age
Nevada - No retirement age
New Hampshire 70[30]
New Jersey 70[31] Judges serving as Administrative Director of the Courts may apply to defer retirement.[32]
New Mexico - No retirement age
New York 70[33] Judges may finish out year they turn 70. There is no retirement limit for Town and Village Courts.
North Carolina 72[34] Judges must retire the last day of the month in which they have turned 72[34]
North Dakota Judges who do not retire at 73 lose all earned retirement benefits.[35] No retirement age; however, judges lose their earned retirement benefits if they do not apply for retirement before turning 73.[36]
Ohio 70[37] Judges may finish the final term during which they turn 70[37]
Oklahoma - No retirement age; limit may be established by statute.[38]
Oregon 75[39] Limit may be reduced to as low as 70 by statute or initiative.[39]
Pennsylvania 75[40] Judges may finish out year they turn 75.[40]
Rhode Island - No retirement age[41]
South Carolina 72[42] No limit for Probate or Municipal Court judges.[42]
South Dakota 70[43] Judges that turn 70 may serve until the first Tuesday following a Monday of the year following the next state legislature election.[43]
Tennessee - No retirement age
Texas 75[44][45] Conditions may vary. See Article 5 for more information[44]
Utah 75[46]
Vermont 90[2]Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title Judges may finish out year they turn 90.[2]
Virginia 73[47] Judge will be retired 20 days after the regular session of the General Assembly following birthday.[47]
Washington 75[48] Judges may finish out year they turn 75[48]
West Virginia - No retirement age
Wisconsin - The Wisconsin Blue Book 2005-2006 states: "Wisconsin used to have a mandatory retirement age for judges and justices. From 1955 to 1978, judges and justices had to retire at age 70. Since 1977, the Wisconsin Constitution has authorized the legislature to impose a maximum age of no less than 70, but the legislature has not done so."[49]
Wyoming 70[50]

Path to the ballot

Amending the New Hampshire Constitution

See also: Amending the New Hampshire Constitution

In New Hampshire, a 60 percent vote in each house of the New Hampshire General Court is needed during one legislative session to refer a legislatively referred constitutional amendment to the ballot for voter consideration.

For 2024 constitutional amendments, a minimum of 201 votes were required in the House and 13 votes were required in the Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

The ballot measure was introduced as Constitutional Amendment 6 to the New Hampshire General Court on December 28, 2022. It was adopted in the state House on March 10, 2023, with a 321-27. The Senate passed the amendment by 22-1 on March 30, 2023.[3]

Vote in the New Hampshire House of Representatives
March 15, 2023
Requirement: Three-fifths (60 percent) vote of all members in each chamber
Number of yes votes required: 238  Approveda
YesNoNot voting
Total3212752
Total percent80.8%6.8%13.0%
Democrat1581721
Republican16210328
Independent100

How to cast a vote

See also: Voting in New Hampshire

See below to learn more about current voter registration rules, identification requirements, and poll times in New Hampshire.

How to vote in New Hampshire


See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 New Hampshire General Court, "Constitutional Amendment Concurrent Resolution 6," accessed April 5, 2023
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Vermont Public Radio, "Legislature sets judges' retirement age at 90 years," May 20, 2003 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "vt" defined multiple times with different content
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 New Hampshire State Legislature, "Docket of CACR6," accessed March 16, 2023
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 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 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content
  5. ↑ New Hampshire Campaign Finance Information System, "Search," accessed April 11, 2023
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Justia, "Amendment 328 Ratified," accessed Jan. 26, 2022
  7. ↑ Alaskan Constitution Art. IV, Sec. 11
  8. ↑ Arizona Constitution Art. VI Sec. 20
  9. ↑ Arizona Constitution Art. VI Sec. 39
  10. ↑ Arkansas Code, "Title 24 - Retirement And Pensions," accessed Jan. 11, 2022
  11. ↑ Arkansas Times, "Arkansas judges want age limit removed," Jan. 19, 2022
  12. ↑ Colorado Constitution Art. VI Sec. 23
  13. ↑ Connecticut Constitution Art. V, Sec. 6
  14. ↑ Council of the District of Columbia, "§ 1–204.31. Judicial powers." accessed Jan. 19, 2022
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Florida Constitution Art. V, Sec. 8
  16. ↑ Hawaii Constitution Art. VI, Sec. 3
  17. ↑ 705 ILCS 55/1 "Compulsory Retirement of Judges Act."
  18. ↑ ABA Journal, "Top Illinois Court Axes Mandatory Retirement Law for State Judges," June 18, 2009
  19. ↑ Chapter 13: The Commission on Judicial Qualifications and the Retirement, Discipline, and Removal of Justices and Judges Section "§ 33-38-13-8 Age; Temporary Judicial Duties" accessed Jan. 19, 2022
  20. ↑ LegiScan.com "Indiana Senate Bill 463" accessed Jan. 19, 2022
  21. ↑ Chapter 602: Judicial Branch "602.1610 Mandatory retirement" accessed Jan. 19, 2022
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Chapter 20: Courts Article 26: Retirement System For Justices And Judges, "Statute: 20-2608(a)" accessed Jan 19, 2022
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Louisiana Constitution Art. V, Sec. 23
  24. ↑ Maryland Constitution Art. IV, Sec. 3
  25. ↑ Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Chapter III: Judiciary Power - Art. XCVII" accessed Jan. 19, 2022
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Michigan Constitution Art. VI, Sec. 19
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 Minnesota Statutes, "Statute: 490.121(21d) & 490.125," accessed Jan 19, 2022
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 Missouri Constitution Art. V, Sec. 26
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 Missouri Revised Statutes, "Statute: 479.020(7)," accessed Jan. 19, 2022
  30. ↑ New Hampshire Constitution Art. 78
  31. ↑ New Jersey Constitution Art. XI, Sec. IV
  32. ↑ LegiScan "New Jersey Senate Bill 4098" accessed Jan. 19, 2022
  33. ↑ New York Constitution Art. VI, Sec. 25
  34. ↑ 34.0 34.1 ncga.state.nc.us, "Article 1B: Age Limits for Service as Justice or Judge."
  35. ↑ North Dakota Century Code "Chapter 27-17: Retirement of Judges" accessed Jan 19, 2022
  36. ↑ North Dakota Century Code "Chapter 27-17: Retirement of Judges" accessed Jan 19, 2022
  37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 Ohio Constitution Art. IV, Sec. 6
  38. ↑ Oklahoma Constitution Art. VII, Sec. 11
  39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 Oregon Constitution Art. VII, Sec. 1a
  40. ↑ 40.0 40.1 Pennsylvania Constitution Art. V, Sec. 16
  41. ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Rhode Island," archived October 6, 2014
  42. ↑ 42.0 42.1 South Carolina Legislature, "Title 9 - Retirement Systems"
  43. ↑ 43.0 43.1 South Dakota Legislature, "Statute: 16-1-4.1" accessed Jan. 21, 2022
  44. ↑ 44.0 44.1 Texas Constitution Art. 5, Sec. 1-a
  45. ↑ Texas Lawyer, "Chief Justice’s Election Bid Puts Spotlight on Texas’ Mandatory Judicial Retirement," Jan. 6, 2020
  46. ↑ Utah State Legislature, "Statute: 49-18-701: Judges' mandatory retirement age." accessed Jan. 21, 2022
  47. ↑ 47.0 47.1 Virginia State Law "§ 51.1-305. Service retirement generally (B1)" accessed Jan. 21, 2022
  48. ↑ 48.0 48.1 Art. IV, Sec. 3.28a.29
  49. ↑ Wisconsin Blue Book 2005-2006
  50. ↑ Wyoming Constitution, Art. V, Sec. 5
  51. ↑ New Hampshire Revised Statutes - Title 63, Chapter 659.4," accessed April 25, 2023
  52. ↑ 52.0 52.1 52.2 New Hampshire Secretary of State, “How to Register to Vote,” accessed June 25, 2024
  53. ↑ New Hampshire Secretary of State, “Register to Vote,” accessed June 25, 2024
  54. ↑ General Court of New Hampshire, "CHAPTER 378 HB 1569-FN - FINAL VERSION," accessed November 14, 2024
  55. ↑ Under federal law, the national mail voter registration application (a version of which is in use in all states with voter registration systems) requires applicants to indicate that they are U.S. citizens in order to complete an application to vote in state or federal elections, but does not require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the application "may require only the minimum amount of information necessary to prevent duplicate voter registrations and permit State officials both to determine the eligibility of the applicant to vote and to administer the voting process."
  56. ↑ 56.0 56.1 56.2 State of New Hampshire, "Voter ID Law Explanatory Document," accessed June 25, 2024
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