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SB25 • 2026

JUDICIAL RETENTION ELECTION INFORMATION

An Act relating to information on judicial officers seeking retention in office.

Elections Taxes
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
SENATOR MYERS
Last action
2025-03-20
Official status
(S) STA
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official text specifies different word limits and required details depending on the court level (e.g., Superior/District vs. Supreme/Court of Appeals) and whether it is a judge's first retention election.

SB25: Rules for Judicial Retention Election Information

This bill updates the rules about what information judges and justices can share with voters, as well as what reports the Judicial Council must file before a retention election.

What This Bill Does

  • Allows judges to submit up to 300 words of personal information, including photos, residency details, military service, professional activities, and other supporting materials.
  • Removes the requirement for judges to include a specific statement advocating for their own re-election in their submitted materials.
  • Requires the Judicial Council to file detailed reports on each judge facing retention by August 7 before an election year.
  • Sets word limits of fewer than 1,200 words total for the statements filed by the Judicial Council about judges and justices.
  • Updates the list of required information in council reports to include a self-assessment by the judge on their performance.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Supreme Court justices
  • Court of Appeals judges
  • Superior Court judges
  • District Court judges

Terms To Know

Retention election
A vote where the public decides if a judge should keep their job.
Judicial Council
The group that evaluates judges and prepares reports about them for voters.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill text does not state the specific date this law will take effect.
  • The exact content of future council evaluations depends on information available at election time, such as whether a judge is running for retention for the first time.

Bill History

  1. 2025-03-20 Min

    (S) Minutes (SSTA)

  2. 2025-03-20 Text

    (S) Scheduled but Not Heard

  3. 2025-03-20 Text

    (S) STATE AFFAIRS at 03:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)

  4. 2025-01-22 32

    (S) REFERRED TO STATE AFFAIRS

  5. 2025-01-22 32

    (S) STA, JUD

  6. 2025-01-22 32

    (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS

  7. 2025-01-22 32

    (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/10/25

Official Summary Text

JUDICIAL RETENTION ELECTION INFORMATION
An Act relating to information on judicial officers seeking retention in office.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
SB0025A -1- SB 25
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

34-LS0262\A

SENATE BILL NO. 25

IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA

THIRTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE - FIRST SESSION

BY SENATOR MYERS

Introduced: 1/22/25
Referred: State Affairs, Judiciary

A BILL

FOR AN ACT ENTITLED

"An Act relating to information on judicial officers seeking retention in office." 1
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 2
* Section 1. AS 15.58.030(g) is amended to read: 3
(g) Not [NO] later than August 7 of a [THE] year in which the state general 4
election will be held, a person seeking retention in office as a justice or judge may file 5
with the lieutenant governor the following information, not to exceed 300 words: 6
(1) a photograph; 7
(2) information regarding the residency of the justice or judge; 8
(3) information regarding the military service of the justice or 9
judge; 10
(4) information regarding the professional activities of the j ustice 11
or judge, including public outreach and administrative activities; 12
(5) any additional information that the justice or judge would like 13
published to support the justice's or judge's [AND A STATEMENT 14
ADVOCATING THE] candidacy. 15
34-LS0262\A
SB 25 -2- SB0025A
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

* Sec. 2. AS 15.58.050 is amended to read: 1
Sec. 15.58.050. Information and recommendations on judicial off icers. Not 2
[NO] later than August 7 of a [THE] year in which the state general election will be 3
held, the judicial council shall file with the lieutenant gover nor a statement including 4
information about each supreme c ourt justice, court of appeals judge, superior court 5
judge, and district court judge who will be subject to a retent ion election. The 6
statement must [SHALL] reflect the evaluation of each justice or judge conduc ted by 7
the judicial council according to law and , except for information required by law to 8
be kept confidential, must contain, in fewer than 1,200 words total, 9
( 1 ) f o r a s u p e r i o r c o u r t j u d g e o r d i s t r i c t c o u r t j u d g e s u b j e c t t o 10
retention, 11
(A) a statement written by the judge, not to exceed 150 12
words, describing the professional philosophy of the judge; 13
(B) a description of the judici al, legal, or other education o f 14
the judge; 15
(C) a description of the business experience of and 16
professional positions held by the judge in the preceding 10 years; 17
(D) a list of service organizations with which the judge is 18
affiliated; 19
(E) if applicable, ratings of the judge by law enforcement 20
officers, attorneys, court system employees, and jurors; 21
(F) the number of decisions by the judge that were 22
reviewed and disposed of by a written decision of an appellate court and 23
the percentage of issues in those decisions that were affirmed by the 24
appellate court; 25
( G ) a d e s c r i p t i o n o f a n y p u blic disciplinary proceedings 26
against the judge; 27
(H) a self-assessment by the judge, not to exceed 250 words, 28
evaluating the judge's judicial performance; the self-assessmen t may 29
include comments on the judge's satisfaction with the judge's j udicial role, 30
specific contributions to the judiciary or the field of law, gr owth in legal 31
34-LS0262\A
SB0025A -3- SB 25
New Text Underlined [DELETED TEXT BRACKETED]

knowledge and judicial skills, or other measures of judicial ab ilities that 1
the judge believes to be important; 2
(2) for a supreme court justice or court of appeals judge subj ect to 3
retention, the information required under (1)(A) - (E), (G), an d (H) of this 4
subsection; 5
( 3 ) f o r a j u s t i c e o r j u d g e s t a n d i n g r e t e n t i o n f o r t h e f i r s t t ime, a 6
description of 7
(A) previous political and gov ernmental positions held by 8
the justice or judge, including any political office held; 9
(B) the justice's or judge's primary practice areas before 10
appointment, including the approximate percentage of the justic e's or 11
judge's pre-appointment career spent as a trial lawyer; 12
(C) the types of clients the justice or judge represented 13
before appointment [SHALL CONTAIN A BRIEF STATEMENT 14
DESCRIBING EACH PUBLIC REPRIMAND, PUBLIC CENSURE, OR 15
SUSPENSION RECEIVED BY THE JUDGE UNDER AS 22.30.011(d) 16
DURING THE PERIOD COVERED IN THE EVALUATION. A 17
STATEMENT MAY NOT EXCEED 600 WORDS]. 18