Senate Journal: Page 60: Wednesday, January 13, 1999

  Madam President, Mr. Speaker, Governor Branstad and Lieutenant Governor
  Corning, Governor-Elect Vilsack and Lieutenant Governor-Elect Pederson,
  members of
  the General Assembly, state officials, judges, and friends:

  We are honored and pleased by the opportunity each year to review the
  significant
  activities of the court system and make recommendations aimed at providing
  the
  highest quality of justice to the people of Iowa.  We sincerely thank the
  General
  Assembly for the kind invitation to speak here today.

  Let me begin by extending a warm welcome to the new legislators and state
  officials.  I also want to welcome Governor-Elect Vilsack and Lieutenant
  Governor-
  Elect Pederson.  We look forward to working with all of you on issues
  involving the
  administration of justice.

  I would like to acknowledge Justice Mark Cady, the newest member of the
  supreme
  court, and Judge Van Zimmer who joined the court of appeals last week.

  Before I begin my main remarks, I would like to recognize and thank Governor
  Branstad for his strong support of the judicial branch over the years. His
  leadership
  was crucial in bringing about the landmark Court Reorganization Act in the
  1980s,
  which secured state funding for the court system.  As a result of this
  far-sighted
  reform, our courts operate more efficiently and resources flow where they
  are most
  needed.  Today, Iowans in all counties enjoy more equal access to court
  services than
  was possible under the previous county funding structure.

  Governor Branstad has always said that appointing judges is a governor's
  most
  important job.  He has appointed nearly  eighty percent of Iowa's judges.
  However, it
  is the quality of the appointments he has made rather than the quantity for
  which he
  will be remembered.  He took great care to appoint hardworking, fair minded
  and
  highly principled judges, without regard to partisan political pressures.
  Because I am
  among the twenty percent he did not appoint, it is appropriate for me to say
  this.

  Governor Branstad, we thank you and wish you well.

  After my address, we hope all of you will join us for coffee and
  conversation
  downstairs in the courtroom.  During the reception, I will present our Child
  Advocate
  of the Year Award.  This award is given to recognize an individual who has
  made an
  extraordinary personal commitment to helping Iowa's troubled children.

  The focus of my address will be about the primary work of the courts -
  deciding
  cases.  However, I would be remiss if I did not mention a few of the many
  activities we
  have underway to help shape the future of the court system.

  Last session, we agreed to move judicial branch operations into a new
  building
  which will house both appellate courts and our administrative offices.  If
  everything
  goes as planned, we will move into the new judicial building in the summer
  of 2002.

  We look forward to the challenge of creating a building that will serve as a
  monument to justice.  We envision a building which conveys a sense of
  timelessness
  and dignity; a building equipped with state-of-the-art communications
  technology; and
  a building which reflects Iowans' respect for the rule of law.  Though no
  building could

© 1999 Cornell College and League of Women Voters of Iowa

Comments about this site or page? sjourn@legis.iowa.gov.
Please remember that the person listed above does not vote on bills. Direct all comments concerning legislation to State Legislators.

Last update: Fri Jan 29 13:40:38 CST 1999
URL: /DOCS/GA/78GA/Session.1/SJournal/00000/00060.html
jhf