Texas will head to the polls in November to decide on 17 ballot measures, including Proposition 12, which will be the eighth amendment related to the State Commission on Judicial Conduct (SCJC), which was established in the constitution in 1965.
Proposition 12 would amend the Texas Constitution to change the composition of the SCJC by removing the requirement that the six members appointed by the Texas Supreme Court, with the advice and consent of the state Senate, be judges from specific courts. The amendment would require two of the six to be trial court judges. It would increase the minimum age to serve on the commission from 30 years to 35 years.
Proposition 12 would also make changes to the tribunal that reviews the commission’s recommendation for the removal or retirement of judges. The review tribunal would be composed of seven justices of the Courts of Appeals chosen by the chief justice of the state Supreme Court. Currently, members of the review tribunal are chosen by lot by the chief justice, and each court of appeals designates one of its members for inclusion in the list for selection.
State Sen. Joan Huffman (R-17), the author of the amendment, said, “These constitutional changes would ensure that the commission maintains appropriate oversight while also increasing transparency.”
Currently, the state commission has authority over the following Texas judges:
- municipal judges,
- magistrates,
- justices of the peace,
- constitutional county judges,
- county court at law judges,
- statutory probate judges,
- district judges,
- appellate judges,
- retired and former judges sitting by assignment, and
- associate judges and masters.
Texas voters created the SCJC with the approval of Proposition 8 in 1965 by a margin of 73% to 27%. Proposition 8 imposed a mandatory retirement age on district and appellate judges and created the commission under the name State Judicial Qualifications Commission.
In 1970, Texans approved Proposition 1, authorizing the State Judicial Qualifications Commission to censure or remove justices, judges, and justices of the peace under certain circumstances. It was approved with 72% of the vote. Voters approved changing the commission’s name to the State Commission on Judicial Conduct in 1977 with the adoption of Proposition 7. The amendment also specified its investigative and disciplinary powers over judicial members. It was approved with 66% of the vote.
In 1984, an amendment was approved to expand the grounds for disciplining judicial officials, broaden the jurisdiction of the commission, and alter its composition. It was approved with 77% of the vote.
In 2005, 63% of voters approved of expanding the commission from 11 to 13 members, adding one public member and one constitutional county court judge, with the passage of Proposition 6. In 2013, Proposition 9 expanded the sanctions the State Commission on Judicial Conduct may impose on judges or justices after formal proceedings. It was approved with 85% of the vote—the highest approval rate of the seven amendments.
The last amendment Texans decided on related to the SCJC was in 2021 when the voters approved Proposition 5 to authorize the commission to accept and investigate complaints and reports against candidates running for state judicial office. It was approved with 59% of the vote—the lowest approval rate of the seven amendments.
During fiscal year 2024, the SCJC received 1,135 complaints. At the time of the annual report, 49 had resulted in disciplinary action, and 258 cases were still pending.
The 17 amendments on the November ballot in Texas address homestead tax exemptions, tax preemptions, citizenship voting, parental rights, business taxes, and restricted-use funds.
Additional reading: