Letter: HB 38 will be awful for our judiciary
Beaver County Times
There are many reasons to oppose this bill. Here are just a few:
• There is no evidence of public support for this bill. In fact, there is evidence of bipartisan opposition. Two Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee voted against it. Nonpartisan good government groups like the League of Women Voters, Fair Districts PA and the Committee of Seventy oppose it.
• It has had very little review by legislators. There have been no public hearings and no testimony for or against it.
• Supporters of the bill claim the bill will address an issue with “regional diversity” on the courts. But this is a red herring. “Regional diversity” already exists on our appeals courts. Superior Court Judge Kunselman, for example, is from Beaver County. Yet, unlike legislators, judges don’t and shouldn’t represent districts. Their job is to apply the law regardless of where they or a petitioner lives.