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House Research Department Page November 1943 3 Term Limits fbr Elective Office 2 Term limits have widely varying features. Term limits are legal restrictions on how long a person may hold a given public office. Some limits are stated as a number of permitted years of service, others are computed as a number of permitted terms. Term limits for elective office are implemented by prohibiting filing for candidacy by a person whose next election would violate the limits.1 The map on the opposite page and the chart that follows show the variety of features of term limits in other states. Elective offices in the executive and legislative branches and at all levels (federal, state, local) of government have been subjected to term limits. A term limit may apply to a single office or to a whole category of similar offices. The duration of permitted service varies with different offices and among states. A term limit may apply to consecutive years or terms of service; to the candidate's lifetime; or to a maximum permitted service during a fixed period of years. Term limit provisions may include special language addressing the situation of incomplete terms and resignation from office, or those situations may be covered by the general rule. Finally, except for Maine, service in office before adoption of term limits has been excluded in the implementation of newly adopted term limits. Other states have imposed term limits. Minnesota is one of 12 stares that have not imposed terra limits on any constitutionally created elective office. Currently 37 states limit the terms of office of their governors. In the 1990, 1992, and 1993 elections 16 states adopted additional term limits through initiative or referendum on state and federal offices. Those newer term limits are summarized in the chart beginning on page 4. None of the term limit provisions adopted by the various stares since 1990 have included local government offices. However, many cities, by local initiative, have adopted term limits for their mayors and council members. Currently, one third of U.S. cities with a population over 250,000 and an unknown proportion of smaller cities have term limits for their elective offices -In addition,, two-counties-in-California have terra limits for their county board -_ _ -- members. Theoretically,term limits can also be implemented by prohibiting listing a candidate on the ballot for an office based on the number of years or terms of service the candidate has had in that office. This approach is currently subject to court challenges in several stases where state adopted initiatives attempt to limit terms of federal offices by prohibiting listing certain federal candidates on the ballot based on their prior service in that office. 8 O a S 3 I Z I a Nit 3 O 3!'iOtr3 Z * I't. 9 : I O 176 °6 t °L O