House energy committee hears clerk on end-of‑session rules as small Senate amendment on 'Rygate' advances

The House Committee on Energy and Digital Infrastructure met May 15 to review end‑of‑session procedures and plan next steps after the Senate added a short amendment to S319 that committee members said includes a provision referred to in the meeting as the “Rygate” language. For the next steps, the committee expects legislative counsel to brief members at 8:30 a.m. the following day and to take testimony the next week; the Public Utilities Commission agreed to provide written testimony, Department of Public Safety participation was uncertain, and Forest Parks and Rec was invited to appear.

The guidance came from Beth Ann Reisz, clerk of the House, who walked members through the legislative calendar and committee procedures that govern how a bill moves between chambers at the end of session. “Every bill must have three readings at each chamber,” Reisz told the committee, and she explained the sequence from first reading to committee referral, notice calendar, action calendar and third reading. She emphasized that once a committee votes a bill out and it moves to the floor, “the committee cannot offer an amendment when you no longer have…