Senate suspends rule to let Appropriations Committee hear budget bills on June 17

Senator Carroll moved that the Senate suspend the portion of Senate Rule 7(b)(5) requiring committees to distribute agendas at least five days before a meeting and requiring unanimous consent to add bills, so the Appropriations Committee could hear multiple budget bills on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. The Senate voted and the motion carried.

The suspension cleared the way for the Appropriations Committee to consider a suite of fiscal measures the Senate formally introduced on the floor, including Senate Bill 1735, titled the 2025–2026 General Appropriations Act, and department-focused appropriations bills such as SB 1736 (commerce), SB 1737 (capital outlays), SB 1739 (criminal justice), SB 1740 (environment), SB 1741 (health care), SB 1742 (higher education), SB 1743 (human services), SB 1744 (K‑12 education), SB 1746 (management staples), SB 1748 (state budget implementation and revenue), SB 1749, SB 1750 (transportation) and accompanying second concurrent resolutions on school district expenditure limits (SCR 1041 and SCR 1042).

The rule Carroll cited, Senate Rule 7(b)(5), requires committee agendas be distributed five days before a meeting and that adding bills to an agenda require unanimous committee consent; Carroll argued those requirements should be suspended for the Appropriations Committee to meet the Legislature's budget schedule. The Senate clerk recorded the action and the body directed the secretary to notify the House and committees accordingly.

Senate leaders also announced the Appropriations Committee would meet at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, June 17, in Room 109, followed by the Rules Committee and party caucuses. The suspension is a procedural change enabling the committee to take up the listed budget bills at that hearing.