USA > Kentucky > A history of Kentucky > Part 15
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THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT. Officers for the State at Large.
SEC. 69. The supreme executive power of the Commonwealth shall be vested in a chief magistrate, who shall be styled the "Gov- ernor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky."
SEC. 70. He shall be elected for the term of four years by the qualified voters of the State. The person having the highest number of votes shall be governor ; but if two or more shall be equal and highest in votes, the election shall be determined by lot in such man- ner as the General Assembly may direct.
SEC. 71. He shall be ineligible for the succeeding four years after the expiration of the term for which he shall have been elected.
SEC. 72. He shall be at least thirty years of age, and have been a citizen and a resident of Kentucky for at least six years next preced- ing his election.
SEC. 73. He shall commence the execution of the duties of his office on the fifth Tuesday succeeding his election, and shall continue in the execution thereof until his successor shall have qualified.
SEC. 74. He shall at stated times receive for his services a compen- sation to be fixed by law.
SEC. 75. He shall be commander-in-chief of the army and navy of this Commonwealth, and of the militia thereof, except when they shall be called into the service of the United States ; but he shall not com- mand personally in the field, unless advised so to do by a resolution of the General Assembly.
SEC. 76. He shall have the power, except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, to fill vacancies by granting commissions, which
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shall expire when such vacancies shall have been filled according to the provisions of this Constitution.
SEC. 77. He shall have power to remit fines and forfeitures, com- mute sentences, grant reprieves and pardons, except in case of impeachment ; and he shall file with each application therefor a state- ment of the reasons for his decision thereon, which application and statement shall always be open to public inspection. In cases of treason, he shall have power to grant reprieves until the end of the next session of the General Assembly, in which the power of par- doning shall be vested ; but he shall have no power to remit the fees of the clerk, sheriff, or Commonwealth's attorney in penal or criminal cases.
SEC. 78. He may require information in writing from the officers of the Executive Department upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices.
SEC. 79. He shall from time to time give to the General Assembly information of the state of the Commonwealth, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he may deem expedient.
SEC. 80. He may, on extraordinary occasions, convene the General Assembly at the seat of government, or at a different place, if that should have become dangerous from an enemy or from contagious diseases. In case of disagreement between the two Houses with re- spect to the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper, not exceeding four months. When he shall convene the General Assembly, it shall be by proclama- tion, stating the subjects to be considered, and no others shall be considered.
SEC. 81. He shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.
SEC. 82. A lieutenant-governor shall be chosen at every regular election for governor, in the same manner, to continue in office for the same time, and possess the same qualifications, as the governor. He shall be ineligible to the office of lieutenant-governor for the suc- ceeding four years after the expiration of the term for which he shall have been elected.
SEC. 83. He shall, by virtue of his office, be president of the Senate, have a right, when in committee of the whole, to debate and vote on all subjects, and, when the Senate is equally divided, to give the casting vote.
SEC. 84. Should the governor be impeached, and removed from office, die, refuse to qualify, resign, be absent from the State, or be from any cause unable to discharge the duties of his office, the lieu- tenant-governor shall exercise all the power and authority appertaining to the office of governor until another be duly elected and qualified, or the governor shall return or be able to discharge the duties of his office. On the trial of the governor, the lieutenant-governor shall not act as president of the Senate or take part in the proceedings, but the chief justice of the Court of Appeals shall preside during the trial.
SEC. 85. A president pro tempore of the Senate shall be elected by each Senate as soon after its organization as possible, the lieutenant
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governor vacating his seat as president of the Senate until such elec- tion shall be made ; and as often as there is a vacancy in the office of president pro tempore, another president pro tempore of the Senate shall be elected by the Senate, if in session. And if, during the vacancy of the office of governor, the lieutenant-governor shall be impeached, and removed from office, refuse to qualify, resign, die, or be absent from the State, the president pro tempore of the Senate shall in like manner administer the government : provided, whenever. a vacancy shall occur in the office of governor before the first two years of the term shall have expired, a new election for governor shall take place to fill such vacancy.
SEC. 86. The lieutenant-governor, or president pro tempore of the Senate, while he acts as president of the Senate, shall receive for his services the same compensation which shall, for the same period, be allowed for the speaker of the House of Representatives ; and during the time he administers the government as governor, he shall receive the same compensation which the governor would have received had he been employed in the duties of his office.
SEC. 87. If the lieutenant-governor shall be called upon to admin- ister the government, and shall, while in such administration, resign, die, or be absent from the State during the recess of the General Assembly, if there be no president pro tempore of the Senate, it shall be the duty of the secretary of state for the time being to convene the Senate for the purpose of choosing a president; and until a presi- dent is chosen, the secretary of state shall administer the government. If there be no secretary of state to perform the duties devolved upon him by this section, or in case that officer be absent from the State, then the attorney-general for the time being shall convene the Sen- ate for the purpose of choosing a president, and shall administer the government until a president is chosen.
SEC. 88. Every bill which shall have passed the two Houses shall be presented to the governor. If he approve, he shall sign it ; but if not, he shall return it, with his objections, to the House in which it originated, which shall enter the objections in full upon its journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, a ma- jority of all the members elected to that House shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, with the objections, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be considered, and, if approved by a majority of all the members elected to that House, it shall be a law ; but in such case the votes of both Houses shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the members voting for and against the bill shall be entered upon the journal of each House respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the governor within ten days (Sundays ex- cepted) after it shall have been presented to him, it shall be a law in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the General Assembly, by their adjournment, prevent its return, in which case it shall be a law, unless disapproved by him within ten days after the adjournment, in which case his veto message shall be spread upon the register kept by the secretary of state. The governor shall have power to disap- prove any part or parts of appropriation bills embracing distinct
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items, and the part or parts disapproved shall not become a law unless reconsidered and passed, as in case of a bill.
SEC. 89. Every order, resolution, or vote in which the concurrence of both Houses may be necessary, except on a question of adjourn- ment, or as otherwise provided in this Constitution, shall be pre- sented to the governor, and, before it shall take effect, be approved by him, or, being disapproved, shall be repassed by a majority of the members elected to both Houses, according to the rules and limita- tions prescribed in case of a bill.
SEC. 90. Contested elections for governor and lieutenant-governor shall be determined by both Houses of the General Assembly, accord- ing to such regulations as may be established by law.
SEC. 91. A treasurer, auditor of public accounts, register of the land office, commissioner of agriculture, labor, and statistics, secretary of state, attorney-general, and superintendent of public instruction, shall be elected by the qualified voters of the State at the same time the governor is elected, for the term of four years, each of whom shall be at least thirty years of age at the time of his election, and shall have been a resident citizen of the State at least two years next before his election. The duties of all these officers shall be such as may be prescribed by law ; and the secretary of state shall keep a fair register of and attest all the official acts of the governor, and shall, when required, lay the same, and all papers, minutes, and vouchers relative thereto, before either House of the General Assembly. The officers named in this section shall enter upon the discharge of their duties the first Monday in January after their election, and shall hold their offices until their successors are elected and qualified.
SEC. 92. The attorney-general shall have been a practicing lawyer eight years before his election.
SEC. 93. The treasurer, auditor of public accounts, secretary of state, commissioner of agriculture, labor, and statistics, attorney-gen- eral, superintendent of public instruction, and register of the land office shall be ineligible to reelection for the succeeding four years after the expiration of the term for which they shall have been ' elected. The duties and responsibilities of these officers shall be pre- scribed by law, and all fees collected by any of said officers shall be covered into the treasury. Inferior State officers, not specifically provided for in this Constitution, may be appointed or elected, in such manner as may be prescribed by law, for a term not exceeding four years, and until their successors are appointed or elected and qualified.
SEC. 94. The General Assembly may provide for the abolishment of the office of the register of the land office, to take effect at the end of any term, and shall provide by law for the custody and preser- vation of the papers and records of said office, if the same be abolished.
SEC. 95. The election under this Constitution for governor, lieu- tenant-governor, treasurer, auditor of public accounts, register of the land office, attorney-general, secretary of state, superintendent of public instruction, and commissioner of agriculture, labor, and statis-
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tics, shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, eighteen hundred and ninety-five, and the same day every four years thereafter.
SEC. 96. All the officers mentioned in section ninety-five shall be paid for their services by salary, and not otherwise.
OFFICERS FOR DISTRICTS AND COUNTIES.
SEC. 97. At the general election in eighteen hundred and ninety- ¡two there shall be elected in each circuit court district a Common- wealth's attorney, and in each county a clerk of the circuit court, who shall enter upon the discharge of the duties of their respective offices on the first Monday in January after their election, and shall hold their offices five years, and until their successors are elected and qualified. In the year eighteen hundred and ninety-seven, and every six years thereafter, there shall be an election in each county for a circuit court clerk, and for a Commonwealth's attorney in each circuit court district, unless that office be abolished, who shall hold their respective offices for six years from the first Monday in January after their election, and until the election and qualification of their suc- cessors.
SEC. 98. The compensation of the Commonwealth's attorney shall be by salary and such percentage of fines and forfeitures as may be fixed by law, and such salary shall be uniform in so far as the same shall be paid out of the State treasury, and not to exceed the sum of five hundred dollars per annum ; but any county may make addi- tional compensation, to be paid by said county. Should any per- centage of fines and forfeitures be allowed by law, it shall not be paid except upon such proportion of the fines and forfeitures as have been collected and paid into the State treasury, and not until so collected and paid.
SEC. 99. There shall be elected in eighteen hundred and ninety- four in each county a judge of the county court, a county court clerk, a county attorney, sheriff, jailer, coroner, surveyor, and assessor, and in each justice's district one justice of the peace and one constable, who shall enter upon the discharge of the duties of their offices on the first Monday in January after their election, and continue in office three years, and until the election and qualification of their succes- sors ; and in eighteen hundred and ninety-seven, and every four years thereafter, there shall be an election in each county of the officers mentioned, who shall hold their offices four years (from the first Monday in January after their election), and until the election and qualification of their successors. The first election of sheriffs under this Constitution shall be held in eighteen hundred and ninety-two, and the sheriffs then elected shall hold their offices two years, and until the election and qualification of their successors. The sheriffs now in office for their first term shall be eligible to reelection in eighteen hundred and ninety-two, and those elected in eighteen hun- dred and ninety-two for the first term shall be eligible to reëlection in eighteen hundred and ninety-four, but thereafter no sheriff shall
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be eligible to reelection or to act as deputy for the succeeding term.
SEC. 100. No person shall be eligible to the offices mentioned in sections ninety-seven and ninety-nine who is not at the time of his election twenty-four years of age (except clerks of county and circuit courts, who shall be twenty-one years of age), a citizen of Kentucky, and who has not resided in the State two years, and one year next preceding his election in the county and district in which he is a can- didate. No person shall be eligible to the office of Commonwealth's attorney unless he shall have been a licensed practicing lawyer four years. No person shall be eligible to the office of county attorney unless he shall have been a licensed practicing lawyer two years. No person shall be eligible to the office of clerk unless he shall have pro- cured from a judge of the Court of Appeals, or a judge of a circuit court, a certificate that he has been examined by the clerk of his court under his supervision, and that he is qualified for the office for which he is a candidate.
SEC. IOI. Constables shall possess the same qualifications as sher- iffs, and their jurisdiction shall be coextensive with the counties in which they reside. Constables now in office shall continue in office until their successors are elected and qualified.
SEC. 102. When a new county shall be created, officers for the same, to serve until the next regular election, shall be elected or appointed in such way and at such times as the General Assembly may prescribe.
SEC. 103. The judges of county courts, clerks, sheriffs, surveyors, coroners, jailers, constables, and such other officers as the General Assembly may from time to time require, shall, before they enter upon the duties of their respective offices, and as often thereafter as may be deemed proper, give such bond and security as may be pre- scribed by law.
SEC. 104. The General Assembly may abolish the office of assessor, and provide that the assessment of property shall be made by other, officers ; but it shall have power to reestablish the office of assessor and prescribe his duties. No person shall be eligible to the office of assessor two consecutive terms.
SEC. 105. The General Assembly may at any time consolidate the offices of jailer and sheriff in any county or counties, as it shall deem most expedient ; but, in the event such consolidation be made, the office of sheriff shall be retained, and the sheriff shall be required to perform the duties of jailer.
SEC. 106. The fees of county officers shall be regulated by law. In counties or cities having a population of seventy-five thousand or more, the clerks of the respective courts thereof (except the clerk of the city court), the marshals, the sheriffs, and the jailers shall be paid out of the State treasury, by salary to be fixed by law, the salaries of said officers and of their deputies and necessary office expenses not to exceed seventy-five per centum of the fees collected by said officers respectively, and paid into the treasury.
SEC. 107. The General Assembly may provide for the election or
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appointment, for a term not exceeding four years, of such other county or district ministerial and executive officers as may from time to time be necessary.
SEC. 108. The General Assembly may, at any time after the expira- tion of six years from the adoption of this Constitution, abolish the office of Commonwealth's attorney, to take effect upon the expiration of the terms of the incumbents, in which event the duties of said office shall be discharged by the county attorneys.
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THE JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT.
SEC. 109. The judicial power of the Commonwealth, both as to matters of law and equity, shall be vested in the Senate when sitting as a court of impeachment, and one Supreme Court (to be styled the Court of Appeals), and the courts established by this Constitution.
COURT OF APPEALS.
SEC. IIO. The Court of Appeals shall have appellate jurisdiction only, which shall be coextensive with the State, under such restric- tions and regulations, not repugnant to this Constitution, as may from time to time be prescribed by law. Said court shall have power to issue such writs as may be necessary to give it a general control of inferior jurisdictions.
SEC. III. The Court of Appeals shall be held at the seat of govern- ment ; but if that shall become dangerous, in case of war, insurrection, or pestilence, it may adjourn to meet and transact its business at such other place in the State as it may deem expedient for the time being.
SEC. 112. The judges of the Court of Appeals shall severally hold their offices for the term of eight years, commencing on the first Monday in January next succeeding their respective elections, and until their several successors are qualified, subject to the conditions hereinafter prescribed. For any reasonable cause the governor shall remove them, or any one or more of them, on the address of two- thirds of each House of the General Assembly. The cause or causes for which said removal shall be required shall be stated at length in such address and in the journal of each House. They shall at stated times receive for their services an adequate compensation, to be fixed by law.
SEC. 113. The Court of Appeals shall, after eighteen hundred and ninety-four, consist of not less than five nor more than seven judges. They shall severally, by virtue of their office, be conservators of the peace throughout the State, and shall be commissioned by the governor.
SEC. 114. No person shall be eligible to election as a judge of the Court of Appeals who is not a citizen of Kentucky, and has not resided in this State five years, and in the district in which he is elected two years, next preceding his election, and who is less than thirty-five years of age, and has not been a practicing lawyer eight years, or whose services upon the bench of a circuit court or court of
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similar jurisdiction, when added to the time he may have practiced law, shall not be equal to eight years.
SEC. 115. The present judges of the Court of Appeals shall hold their offices until their respective terms expire, and until their several successors shall be qualified ; and at the regular election next pre- ceding the expiration of the term of each of the present judges, his successor shall be elected. The General Assembly shall, before the regular election in eighteen hundred and ninety-four, provide for the election of such judges of the Court of Appeals, not less than five nor exceeding seven, as may be necessary ; and if less than seven judges be provided for, the General Assembly may at any time increase the number to seven.
SEC. 116. The judges of the Court of Appeals shall be elected by districts. The General Assembly shall, before the regular election in eighteen hundred and ninety-four, divide the State, by counties, into as many districts, as nearly equal in population and as compact in form as possible, as it may provide shall be the number of judges of the Court of Appeals ; and it may, every ten years thereafter, or when the number of judges requires it, redistrict the State in like manner. Upon the creation of new or additional districts, the General Assem- bly shall designate the year in which the first election for a judge of the Court of Appeals shall be held in each district, so that not more than the number of judges provided for shall be elected, and that no judge may be deprived of his office until the expiration of the term for which he was elected.
SEC. 117. A majority of the judges of the Court of Appeals shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, but in the event as many as two decline, on account of interest or for other reason, to preside in the trial of any cause, the governor, on that fact being cer- tified to him by the chief justice, shall appoint to try the particular cause a sufficient number of judges to constitute a full court. The judges so appointed shall possess the qualifications prescribed for judges of the Court of Appeals, and receive the same compensation, proportioned to the length of service.
SEC. 118. The judge longest in commission as judge of the Court of Appeals shall be chief justice, and if the term of service of two or more judges be the same, they shall determine by lot which of their number shall be chief justice. The court shall prescribe by rule that petitions for rehearing shall be considered by a judge who did not deliver the opinion in the case ; and the court, if composed of seven judges, shall divide itself into sections for the transaction of business, if, in the judgment of the court, such arrangement is necessary.
SEC. 119. The Superior Court shall continue until the terms of the present judges of said court expire ; and upon the expiration of their terms, all causes pending before the Superior Court shall be trans- ferred to the Court of Appeals, and be determined by it.
SEC. 120. The present clerk of the Court of Appeals shall serve until the expiration of the term for which he was elected, and until his successor is elected and qualified. At the election in the year eighteen hundred and ninety-seven there shall be elected by the
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qualified voters of the State a clerk of the Court of Appeals, who shall take his office the first Monday in September, eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, and who shall hold his office until the regular election in nineteen hundred and three, and until his successor shall be elected and qualified. In nineteen hundred and three, and there- after, the clerk of the Court of Appeals shall be elected at the same time as the governor, for the term of four years; and the said clerk shall take his office on the first Monday in January following his election, and shall hold his office until his successor is elected and qualified. The clerk shall be ineligible for the succeeding term.
SEC. 121. No person shall be eligible to the office of clerk of the Court of Appeals unless he is a citizen of Kentucky, a resident thereof for two years next preceding his election, of the age of twenty- one years, and have a certificate from a judge of the Court of Appeals that he has been examined by him, or by the clerk of his court under his supervision, and that he is qualified for the office.
SEC. 122. Should a vacancy occur in the office of the clerk of the Court of Appeals, or should the clerk be under charges, the Court of Appeals shall have power to appoint a clerk until the vacancy be filled as provided in this Constitution, or until the clerk be acquitted.
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