Lower age for public office debated
Senators discussed a measure on select file Feb. 17 that would allow an 18-year-old to hold public office in Nebraska.
As introduced by O’Neill Sen. Tyson Larson last session, LR26CA would place a proposed constitutional amendment on the November 2016 general election ballot that would change age eligibility for public office in Nebraska to the federal voting age.
Currently, an individual must be 21 to serve in the Legislature and 30 to serve as governor, lieutenant governor or as a Nebraska Supreme Court judge.
Lincoln Sen. Adam Morfeld offered an amendment that would limit the bill’s provisions to legislative and executive branch offices. He said the amendment would remove state Supreme Court judges from the bill’s provisions.
Morfeld said the amendment reflected concerns raised during general file debate that a ballot measure based on the resolution would contain multiple subjects—which the Nebraska Supreme Court has ruled unacceptable in the past.
“This should alleviate any constitutional concerns based on the research that I had on the case law,” he said.
Larson supported the amendment, saying it should address concerns about the proposal and allow voters to decide the measure’s merits.
“It’s wrong to disenfranchise any individual based on age, sex or race, so let’s make sure that we don’t do that,” he said. “Let’s make sure that everyone has a voice and that everyone has the opportunity to serve.”
Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers offered a motion to bracket the bill until April 20, 2016. He said his objections to the proposal were based on policy issues as much as on questions of the constitutionality of the ballot language. Lawmakers should be protectors of the constitution, he said.
“Our responsibility is to winnow—to sort out—and to not just dump things on the public,” Chambers said. “People this age are generally immature when it comes to assuming the responsibilities of public office.”
Gothenburg Sen. Matt Williams supported the bracket motion, saying there is not a pressing need to alter the state constitution. The state does not lack qualified candidates for office, he said, and an individual who would be a good candidate for the Legislature at 18 would be an even better candidate at 21.
Williams said lawmakers should be spending their time on issues of vital importance to the future of the state rather than solving a problem that doesn’t exist.
“I think we need to be careful that we are not exhibiting bad judgment in the Legislature,” he said. “People expect a great deal of us.”
The bracket motion failed on a vote of 14-17, and Chambers filed motion to reconsider that vote. The reconsideration motion and the Morfeld amendment were pending when the Legislature adjourned for the day.
