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Elections and Referenda (Amendment) Act 2006

NITIJELA OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE MARSHALL ISLANDS

27TH CONSTITUTIONAL REGULAR SESSION, 2006

BILL NO: 124

P.L.2006-70

ELECTIONS AND REFERENDA (AMENDMENT) ACT 2006
_____________

AN ACT

to amend the "Elections and Referenda Act, 1980" in order to require that candidates for elections to the Nitijela or Local Governments do not have previous convictions for felonies in the Republic or abroad.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE NITIJELA OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE MARSHALL ISLANDS:

Section 1. Short Title.

This Act may be cited as the Elections and Referenda (Amendment) Act, 2006.

Section 2. Amendments.

(1) The Elections and Referenda Act, 1980 is hereby amended to insert a new provision to read as follows:

§109A. General exclusion from candidacy

(1) Any person who has been convicted of a felony, whether in the Republic or in any other country, shall not be eligible to stand as a candidate for elections under section 108 or 109 of this Act or under the Local Government Act 1980 or under any Local Government Constitution, unless that person presents evidence to the Chief Electoral Officer that he or she has been pardoned by the Cabinet under Article V, Section 1(3)(f) of the Constitution of the Marshall Islands or by the equivalent authority in any foreign country.

(2) Pursuant to Subsection (1), the Cabinet shall not pardon any person except with the recommendation of the Parole Board provided under Section 306(1)(b) of the Parole of Prisoners Act 2001.

(2) Section 102 of the Elections and Referenda Act, 1980 is hereby amended to insert a new provision to read as follows:

§102(1)(s)

"felony" means a crime or offense which may be punishable by imprisonment for a period of more than one year, or any meaning ascribed to the term by the Criminal Code of the Republic;

Section 3. Effective Date

This Act shall take effect on the date of certification in accordance with the Constitution and the Rules of Procedures of the Nitijela.

CERTIFICATE

I hereby certify:

(1) That Nitijela Bill No: 124 was passed by the Nitijela of the Republic of the Marshall Islands on the 6^th day of November, 2006; and

(2) That I am satisfied that Nitijela Bill No.: 124 was passed in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Rules of Procedures of the Nitijela

I hereby place my signature before the Clerk this 5^th day of December, 2006.

Attest: