Rhode Island bill requires Judicial Nominating Commission to use standardized merit-based selection and published criteria

Original title: AN ACT RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE -- COURTS -- JUDICIAL SELECTION (Requires the JNC to establish standardized merit-based selection process and that applications be evaluated according to uniform, job-related criteria adopted in advance and published on the commission's website.)

Last action · May 28, 2026: Committee recommended measure be held for further studySponsors: Dawn Euer and 8 others

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What This Bill Proposed

Rhode Island Senate Bill 2947 requires the to establish a standardized process, evaluating judicial applicants using uniform, job-related criteria adopted in advance and published on its website.

Why it matters

Changes how judges are screened and recommended by mandating public, upfront criteria and standardized evaluations for all applicants.

Who It Would Have Affected

Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

Judicial applicants

Directly affected

Judicial Nominating Commission

The commission is required to establish a standardized selection process and publish its evaluation criteria in advance.

Key Facts

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Frequently Asked Questions

What does Senate Bill 2947 require of the Judicial Nominating Commission?

It requires the commission to establish a standardized process and evaluate applications using uniform, job-related criteria adopted in advance and published on its website.

Where must the evaluation criteria be published?

The criteria must be published on the 's website.

What else do you want to know?

News Coverage

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Where This Stands

This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in Senate committee.

Procedural history

3 actions

May 28, 2026
Committee recommended measure be held for further study
May 26, 2026
Scheduled for hearing and/or consideration (05/28/2026)
Mar 4, 2026Introduced
Introduced, referred to Senate Judiciary

Version history

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