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Mercer bill would limit committee pre-introduction power to groups with legislative majorities
Summary
Representative Bill Mercer introduced House Bill 546 to prevent interim councils or working groups that lack a legislative majority from directly pre-introducing committee bills, citing the Criminal Justice Oversight Committee as a unique case granted that authority.
Representative Bill Mercer (House District 52, Billings) told the committee that House Bill 546 would restrict which interim groups may pre-introduce committee legislation by requiring a majority of members be legislators.
Mercer said the Criminal Justice Oversight Committee (CJOC) received the uncommon authority in a prior session to introduce its own legislation, and he described the CJOC as "made up of probably around 20 members only 4 of whom are...legislators." Mercer argued that the small number of legislators on that group reduces institutional memory and context across multiple sessions, and he said bodies that lack a legislative majority should not be able to pre-introduce committee bills.
Senator Heyman asked whether the sponsor's intent would force groups without enough legislators to "start all over again" or otherwise how the process would work. Mercer responded that the CJOC could take recommended legislation to the Law and Justice Interim Committee for consideration and that the bill does not prevent ideas from being suggested, it only limits the privilege of pre-introducing committee bills to bodies with a legislative majority.
Mercer pointed to the Environmental Quality Council as a contrast, saying it has 16 members of which 12 are legislators; that, he said, gives the council adequate legislative perspective when drafting recommendations. The sponsor emphasized that the change is intended to limit a special privilege to groups where a majority of members are legislators.
No proponents, opponents, or informational witnesses were recorded for HB 546 in this hearing. The committee closed the hearing after questions and the sponsor's closing remarks.
