Conference committee schedules vote on amendment to House Bill 2614 after agreeing appointment and removal changes

The chair of the conference committee on House Bill 2614 said the panel has a draft amendment underway and scheduled a follow-up vote for 9:30 a.m. the next day on changes to the bill’s governance and appointment provisions.

The amendment, the chair said, will preserve OJD language regarding a judge or retired judge member on the commission and will retain the current-law standard for removing a commissioner — "inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance." The amendment also would allow the governor to remove the executive director for just cause and would authorize the governor, in consultation with the commission, to appoint an executive director subject to Senate confirmation.

Committee members directed that the amendment be drafted to clarify that appointments are by the governor, to retain consultation with the commission, and to include the Senate confirmation step. The chair said the draft will remove the sunset provision as it applies to consortiums while keeping other consortium governance language intact.

No formal motions or votes on the amendment were taken during the meeting; the committee closed with the amendment still being drafted and a tentative vote scheduled for the following morning.

The committee’s discussion was procedural and limited: the chair summarized the changes and asked if any member had questions; Senator Massena was noted as excused. The transcript does not record additional debate or a formal vote at this meeting.