Opinion ID: 1441686
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Denish and Kelly were Originally Appointed to Fill Vacancies.

Text: (26) Though Denish and Kelly cannot be replaced under Article XX, Section 5, it was in accordance with that constitutional provision that they were originally appointed. They were selected by Governor King to fill the vacancies left by Rymer and Anderson. Their names were submitted to and received the consent of the Senate. See N.M. Const. art. XX, § 5. (27) It is important to this case that this section of the Constitution states explicitly that the replacement officer, once approved by the Senate, serves only until end of the vacated term. He or she is not appointed for the full constitutionally specified term length. N.M. Const. art. XX, § 5; see also N.M. Const. art. V, § 5 (Repl.Pamp.1992) (Should a vacancy occur in any state office, except lieutenant governor and member of the legislature, the governor shall fill such office by appointment, and such appointee shall hold office until the next general election, when his successor shall be chosen for the unexpired term.). In this case, Denish and Kelly, who were appointed midterm, can remain in office only for the remainder of their predecessors' unexpired terms. (28) Denish and Kelly, however, dispute that this rule applies to the regents of New Mexico educational institutions. They argue that Article XII, Section 13 of the State Constitution contains special protections for regents. They point out the fact that [m]embers of the board shall not be removed except for incompetence, neglect of duty or malfeasance in office. N.M. Const. art. XII, § 13. Moreover, they claim that under Article XII, Section 13, with the exception of the first five appointees, regents are seemingly guaranteed six year terms: The governor shall nominate and by and with the consent of the senate shall appoint the members of each board of regents for each of said institutions. The terms of said nonstudent members shall be for six years, provided that of the five first appointed the terms of two shall be for two years, the terms for [sic] two shall be for four years, and the term of one shall be for six years. N.M. Const. art. XII, § 13. (29) It is significant, according to Denish and Kelly, that these special protections for regents were adopted fairly recently in 1949 and even more recently amended in 1993, while the rules set forth in Article XX, Section 5, have remained unchanged from when the New Mexico Constitution was originally ratified in 1911. They point to the rule of constitutional construction that states when two provisions conflict, the latter provision controls as the latest expression of the sovereign will of the people, and as an implied modification pro tanto of the original provision of the Constitution in conflict therewith. Asplund v. Alarid, 29 N.M. 129, 135, 219 P. 786, 788 (1923). They also claim that the newer provision is more specific than the older because it applies only to regents. They offer a second rule of construction that when provisions cannot be harmonized, the specific section governs over the general regardless of priority of enactment. City of Albuquerque v. New Mexico State Corp. Comm'n, 93 N.M. 719, 721, 605 P.2d 227, 229 (1979). They assert that, under these two rules of construction, Article XII, Section 13 is predominant. Denish and Kelly argue, notwithstanding Governor King's miscalculation in the letters of appointment, that they cannot be removed from office absent a showing of neglect, incompetence, or malfeasance, and that they are entitled to a full term of at least five, if not six, years. (30) We disagree for two reasons. First, we do not find a conflict between Article XII, Section 13 and Article XX, Section 5 that would make applicable Denish and Kelly's two rules of construction. Second, their argument for a full term ending in 1997 is completely undermined by the factarticulated in the constitutional provision which they themselves emphasizethat the first five regents appointed after 1949 served staggered terms. We here elaborate upon our two objections.