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Senator Stewart Greenleaf, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has scheduled a public hearing on Merit Selection for Tuesday September 16 at 9:30 am in Hearing Room #1 of the North Office Building, at the corner of North Street and Commonwealth Ave., in Harrisburg. For more information, click here.

Representatives of PMC and PMCAction and members of civic groups, business organizations, and bar associations as well as former Pennsylvania appellate court judges will be offering testimony about why they support Merit Selection for the appellate courts.  Opponents of changing the way we select appellate court judges also will have the opportunity to address the Committee.

We are grateful for this opportunity to continue the public dialogue about the problems inherent in the judicial elections, the need for reform and the benefits of Merit Selection.  We thank Senator Greenleaf and the Judiciary Committee for holding this hearing.  We hope Pennsylvanians will attend, follow media accounts of the hearing and visit our Senate Hearing Information page for more detailed information and access to some of the testimony presented.

Senate Judiciary Chair Stewart Greenleaf has scheduled a public hearing for September 16 to explore the Merit Selection legislation introduced early this year by Senators Jane Earll and Anthony Williams. The hearing will be Sept. 16th at 9:30 a.m. in Hearing Room #1 of the North Office Building in the Capitol Complex in Harrisburg. We will provide updates about who will be testifying and how interested parties can submit written testimony to the committee.

This is an important step in the public dialogue required to amend the constitution to change the way we select appellate judges. The hearing will provide an opportunity for the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, invited guests and the public to discuss the problems with the current system of electing appellate judges, the need for judicial selection reform and the specific proposal.

We appreciate Senator Greenleaf’s willingness to begin the dialogue and look forward to a productive hearing on September 16.