(a) The commission shall be composed of the president pro tempore of the Senate, the minority leader of the Senate, the speaker of the House of Representatives and the minority leader of the House of Representatives, or their designees, the cochairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing committee on judiciary or their designees chosen from among the members of the committee, and nine members appointed as follows: The president pro tempore shall appoint two members and the speaker of the House shall appoint two members; and the Governor shall appoint five members, three of whom shall be members of the bar of this state, one of whom shall be a judge of the Superior or Supreme Court of the state, and one of whom may or may not be a member of the bar of this state but shall be a member of a law faculty of an accredited law school within the state. The commission shall elect one of its members to serve as chairman.

(b) The appointments of the members appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate and the speaker of the House to replace those members whose terms expire on June 30, 1978, shall be as follows: The president pro tempore and the speaker shall each appoint one member to serve for two years and one member to serve for four years from July 1, 1978, or until their successors are appointed. If any member so appointed vacates his office prior to the expiration of his term, the appointing authority shall designate a successor for the unexpired term. The appointments by the Governor of members to replace those whose terms expire on June 30, 1978, shall be as follows: One shall be appointed for a term of one year from July 1, 1978, and two for a term of three years from July 1, 1978, or until their successors are appointed. If any member appointed by the Governor vacates his office before the expiration of the term, the Governor shall appoint a successor for the unexpired term. Thereafter all appointments by the president pro tempore of the Senate, the speaker of the House and the Governor shall be for four years or until a successor is appointed. Any member of the commission may serve successive terms.

(P.A. 74-132, S. 2, 3; 74-338, S. 87, 94; P.A. 77-229; P.A. 78-131, S. 1, 2; P.A. 87-293, S. 1, 2.)

History: P.A. 74-338 changed effective date of P.A. 74-132 from October 1, 1974, to May 8, 1974; P.A. 77-229 removed requirement that designees serving as commission members be general assembly members; P.A. 78-131 amended section to allow reorganization of appointment procedure and make future terms four years; P.A. 87-293 increased membership to include the minority leader of the senate and the minority leader of the house, or their designees, and the cochairpersons and ranking members of the judiciary committee or their designees chosen from among the members of the committee.