House passes bill to limit Governor's pardon powers.

The House today passed a bill, by a 71-26 vote, that would limit the Governor's pardoning power. As passed, the bill would:

* require any person seeking a pardon to apply to the governor;
* require that the person act to accept the pardon; and,
* limits pardons only to those who had been indicted and convicted of a crime.

It now moves to the Senate, where its chances for passage are unknown, but where it needs 23 votes -- or more than 60 percent -- to pass before being placed on the 2008 constitutional ballot.