1. (1)

   1. (a) Eight members of the commission constitute a quorum.
   2. (b) The action of a majority of the quorum constitutes the action of the commission, except that the commission may not make a determination that a judge meets or exceeds minimum performance standards, or that a judge does not meet or exceed minimum performance standards, by a vote of less than six members.
   3. (c) If, because of absences, the commission is unable to make a determination described in Subsection (1)(b) by at least six votes, the commission may meet a second time to make a determination.
   4. (d) If a vote on the question of whether a judge meets or exceeds minimum performance standards or does not meet or exceed minimum performance standards ends in a tie or does not pass by at least six votes, the record shall reflect that the commission made no determination in relation to that judge.

2. (2)

   1. (a) A member of the commission, including a member of the Utah State Bar, may not be disqualified from voting on whether a judge meets or exceeds minimum performance standards solely because the member appears before the judge as an attorney, a fact witness, or an expert, unless the member is a litigant in a case pending before the judge.
   2. (b) Notwithstanding Subsection (2)(a), a member of the commission shall disclose any conflicts of interest with a judge being reviewed to the other members of the commission before the deliberation and vote on whether the judge meets or exceeds minimum performance standards.
   3. (c) Information disclosed under this Subsection (2) is a protected record under Title 63G, Chapter 2, Government Records Access and Management Act.

3. (3)

   1. (a) Any meeting of the commission shall comply with Title 52, Chapter 4, Open and Public Meetings Act, including any electronic meeting.
   2. (b) The commission may meet in a closed meeting to discuss a judge's judicial performance evaluation by complying with Title 52, Chapter 4, Open and Public Meetings Act.
   3. (c) Notwithstanding Subsection (3)(b), any vote of the commission on whether a judge meets or exceeds minimum performance standards shall occur in a meeting open to the public.
   4. (d) The commission may only disclose the final commission vote under Subsection (3)(c).
4. (4) Any record of an individual commissioner's vote on whether a judge meets or exceeds minimum performance standards is a protected record under Title 63G, Chapter 2, Government Records Access and Management Act.

Enacted by Chapter 279, 2026 General Session