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Legislative Services Office request for one bill-drafting attorney fails in tied vote
Summary
The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee declined a motion to add one full-time bill-drafting attorney and $128,500 to the Legislative Services Office (LSO) budget; the motion failed on a 10–10 combined committee tie.
The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee on a tie vote declined a work-group motion to add one full-time bill-drafting attorney and $128,500 to the Legislative Services Office’s FY2026 budget. The motion was made by Representative Tanner and seconded; discussion centered on rising bill-drafting and amendment volume and whether lawmakers should limit bill filings instead of expanding staff.
The committee heard that bill drafting and amendment workload has increased in recent years, with staff drawing higher volumes of drafting requests during session and in summer/fall agency-drafting cycles. LSO director Terry Condiff explained LSO handles drafting and related services year-round and fields requests statewide. Supporters said the additional position would reduce staff overtime and improve turnaround; opponents argued the committee should expect lawmakers to limit filings or prioritize internal efficiencies rather than expand staff.
Roll call: the motion failed when the Senate votes were 5 ayes, 5 nays and the House votes were 5 ayes, 5 nays, yielding a 10–10 combined result. The committee’s cochairs indicated they would revisit staffing requests later if needed.
Ending: LSO, lawmakers and committee cochairs said they would monitor workload and may return with a revised request or alternative approaches to manage drafting demand.
