It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

SECTION 1. Sections 8-16-4, 8-16-13 and 8-16-14 of the General Laws in Chapter 8-16 entitled "Commission on Judicial Tenure and Discipline" are hereby amended to read as follows:

8-16-4. Employment of personnel -- Investigation of unfitness. -- (a) The commission is empowered hereby to engage the services of legal, secretarial, clerical, and investigative employees and to make such other expenditures as are necessary for the effective performance of its functions.

(b) The commission, upon receiving from any person a verified statement, not unfounded or frivolous, alleging facts indicating that a justice of the supreme court, the superior court, the family court, the district court, the workers' compensation court or the division for administrative adjudication {ADD court, or a probate judge in any city or town in the state ADD} within the department of transportation is guilty of a violation of the canons of judicial ethics, or of willful ›or! persistent failure to perform his or her duties, disabling addiction to alcoholic beverages, drugs or narcotics or conduct that brings the judicial office into serious disrepute, or that such a judge or workers' compensation judge or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication has a physical or mental disability that seriously interferes and will continue to interfere with the performance of his or her duties, shall make a preliminary investigation to determine whether formal proceedings shall be instituted and a hearing held. The commission may, on its initiative, make such a preliminary investigation, without receiving a verified statement, to determine whether formal proceedings shall be instituted and a public hearing held.

(c) If the preliminary investigation discloses that a charge of judicial unfitness of the kind mentioned in this section is supported by substantial evidence, it shall direct that a public hearing thereon be held, and the judge or workers' compensation judge or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication shall be notified of the investigation, the nature of the charge, and the time and place set for a hearing thereon. Such judge or workers' compensation judge or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication shall have the right to counsel and to confront witnesses against him or her and shall be afforded a reasonable opportunity to present such matters in defense as he or she may choose. Such notice shall be given by prepaid registered or certified mail addressed to the judge or workers' compensation judge or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication at his or her chambers or his or her last-known place of residence. The judge or workers' compensation judge ›or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication! shall file a written answer to the charges within twenty (20) days after the notice has been served upon him or her. Allegations contained in the notice that are not denied in the answer shall be deemed admitted. The notice and the answer shall be public documents. The judge or workers' compensation judge shall attend the public hearing without the necessity of a subpoena being served upon him or her; and, if he or she is called as a witness by the commission at the public hearing, he or she shall take the witness stand and shall testify in the same manner as if under subpoena.

(d) If the preliminary investigation discloses that there exists a violation of the canons of judicial ethics and said violation is not one of a serious nature, the commission may in its discretion issue a private reprimand to the judge or workers' compensation judge or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication. Said private reprimand shall caution the judge or workers' compensation judge or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication that the conduct complained of, if continued, may be the cause for discipline. The private reprimand shall include a statement of the facts found by the commission, as a result of the preliminary investigation, and may issue confidential suggestions and recommendations with respect to the judge or workers' compensation judge or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication . Any judge or workers' compensation judge or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication issued a private reprimand shall have the right to appeal said private reprimand within ten (10) days and request a hearing before the commission with the same rights accorded by this section; provided, however, that such hearing shall not be open to the public and all evidence and proceedings relating to said private reprimand shall be kept confidential.

(e) Upon completion of such hearings, the commission may dismiss the case on the ground of insufficiency of proof or may recommend to the supreme court the censure, suspension, immediate temporary suspension, reprimand, retirement or removal from office of the judge or workers' compensation judge or administrative judge in the division for administrative adjudication under investigation; provided, however, that the recommendation for the removal of a justice of the supreme court shall be subject to the provisions of section 8-16-7(b) hereof. For the purposes of this chapter, wherever the word "judge" appears, it shall be construed to include workers' compensation commissioners and administrative judges in the division for administrative adjudication {ADD probate judges in the cities and towns of this state ADD} .

(f) The commission shall have the same authority to temporarily exclude all spectators from the public hearing as is possessed by justices of the superior court in criminal cases.

8-16-13. Closed meetings of the commission -- Public hearings -- Evidence to remain confidential until made public at hearing. -- The commission is hereby expressly authorized and permitted to conduct closed meetings for the conduct of all of its business other than public hearings held pursuant to subsection 8-16-4(c). All evidence obtained by the commission, and all evidence that the judge or workers' compensation judge obtains from the commission through discovery or otherwise, shall remain confidential until it becomes the subject of testimony at the public hearing or is introduced into evidence at the public hearing.

8-16-14. Reasonable counsel fees. -- Any justice or commissioner described in this section {ADD judge ADD} , who has been complained against under the provisions of this chapter and who has engaged the services of counsel to respond to said complaint and where such complaint has been dismissed by the commission, shall be entitled to have his or her reasonable counsel fees paid by the state of Rhode Island for those legal services rendered after October 1, 1983.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.