The People’s Choice

The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals took the proper course when it voted 9 to 2 to uphold California’s tough term limits law passed in the form of Proposition 140 in the 1990 election. Opponents had argued that the law unconstitutionally limited voters’ choices in selecting their representatives in Sacramento. But the court correctly ruled that the impact on voters’ rights was minimal.

Several legislative leaders in Sacramento expressed surprise at the decision announced Friday. But it’s proper for the court to uphold the will of the voters unless the initiative measure contains some overt conflict with the U.S. Constitution.

The immediate impact of Friday’s ruling will be more than the usual pre-election chaos in the California Capitol. With the court’s decision, 27 incumbent lawmakers now are banned from seeking reelection. They include the Democratic leaders of both houses: Senate President Pro Tem Bill Lockyer of Hayward and Assembly Speaker Cruz Bustamante of Fresno.

The 1998 legislative session will open against the backdrop of internal power struggles for leadership in both houses. Lockyer now is likely to run for state attorney general in the June primary and said on Friday that he would resign his leadership position once it was necessary for him to be absent from the Senate chamber while out campaigning for office.

Bustamante has expressed a desire to retain the speakership through this session although he may run for lieutenant governor. Past speakers generally have found it impossible to do both, so if Bustamante runs, it is likely he will have to step down as speaker at some point in the session. The jockeying to succeed him already is under way.

Proposition 140 limits senators to two four-year terms and Assembly members to three two-year terms. Once their full terms are served, lawmakers cannot ever run again for that house. This is considered the most restrictive term limits law among those 20 or so states that have such legislation.

Back in 1990, The Times favored a competing ballot measure that would have allowed legislators to serve 12 years in each house, arguing that Proposition 131 would let “fresh breezes into a system that suffers from its own tired hot air.” With Proposition 140, it has been more of a hurricane gusting through the Capitol.

The law has caused congestion in the legislative process because of the inexperience of so many members. But it also has brought some fresh ideas and bright new potential leaders. And that is precisely what the voters wanted.