Republican lawmakers voted Monday to strip Utah Supreme Court justices of the authority to pick their own chief justice, instead giving Gov. Spencer Cox a power that he previously said he had “no interest” in exercising.
The bill awaits the signature of the governor, who has said he now supports the legislation.
Cox changed his mind after lawmakers removed a requirement that the governor had to appoint — and the Senate confirm — the chief justice every four years. Cox vetoed that bill in March, arguing in a letter that it would make the chief justice beholden to the governor if he or she wanted to keep the job and could impair the impartiality of the court.
On the final night of the legislative session earlier this year, Cox told The Salt Lake Tribune in an interview, “I have no interest in appointing the chief justice. I didn’t ask for it. It was not something I wanted.”
Now, under a new version of the bill sponsored by Sen. Brady Brammer, R-Pleasant Grove, the chief justice would serve a single eight-year term and would not be eligible for reappointment. The justice could remain on the court and serve as an associate justice after their term as chief justice expires.
Brammer called it a “compromise bill,” and on Monday it passed the Senate on a 22-7 party-line vote with little debate. The House approved the bill 58-15, with one Republican breaking ranks.
Read more at sltrib.com.
This article is published through the Utah News Collaborative, a partnership of news organizations in Utah that aims to inform readers across the state.