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Bill > ACR12
NJ ACR12
NJ ACR12Proposes constitutional amendment removing gubernatorial appointment of certain municipal court judges.
summary
Introduced
01/13/2026
01/13/2026
In Committee
01/13/2026
01/13/2026
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead
Introduced Session
2026-2027 Regular Session
Bill Summary
This concurrent resolution proposes an amendment to Article VI, Section VI, paragraph 1 of the New Jersey Constitution which would eliminate the Governor and the Senate from involvement in the appointment of certain municipal court judges. The constitutional amendment would provide that judges of municipal courts with jurisdiction extending to more than one municipality would be appointed as provided in law rather than as provided in the Constitution, which requires these judges to be nominated by the Governor and appointed with the advice and consent of the Senate. The statutes currently provide for three types of municipal courts: municipal courts of single municipalities, joint municipal courts, and central municipal courts. A municipal court of a single municipality is created by a single municipality and has jurisdiction over cases from that municipality. A judge of a municipal court of a single municipality is appointed at the municipal level. A joint municipal court is created by two or more municipalities and has jurisdiction over cases from these municipalities. A central municipal court is created by a county and has jurisdiction over cases from all municipalities in that county. The Constitution requires judges of joint municipal courts and central municipal courts to be nominated and appointed at the State level by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. This constitutional amendment would give the Legislature the option to enact a statute that takes the Governor and the Senate out of these appointments and allows these judges to be appointed by another method. For example, judges of a joint municipal court could be appointed solely by the municipalities that created the joint municipal court, and judges of a central municipal court could be appointed solely by the county that created the central municipal court. This constitutional amendment would not preclude the possibility that a statute would continue to provide for nomination by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate but it does permit a statute to set forth another method of selection and appointment.
AI Summary
This concurrent resolution proposes an amendment to the New Jersey Constitution that would change how certain municipal court judges are appointed. Currently, judges of municipal courts that handle cases from more than one municipality, such as joint municipal courts (created by multiple towns) or central municipal courts (created by a county), must be nominated by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate. This resolution would allow the Legislature to create new laws that could establish different appointment methods for these judges, potentially removing the Governor and Senate from the process and allowing for appointments to be made at the local level by the municipalities or county that created the court. The amendment would not affect judges of single-municipality courts, who are already appointed at the local level, and it would not prevent the Legislature from continuing the current appointment process if it chose to do so.
Committee Categories
Justice
Sponsors (2)
Last Action
Introduced, Referred to Assembly Judiciary Committee (on 01/13/2026)
Official Document
bill text
bill summary
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bill summary
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bill summary
| Document Type | Source Location |
|---|---|
| State Bill Page | https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bill-search/2026/ACR12 |
| BillText | https://pub.njleg.gov/Bills/2026/ACR/12_I1.HTM |
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