Staff brief Executive Committee on interim committees, costs and reporting timeline

Deputy Director Elizabeth Berger of Legislative Council staff briefed the Executive Committee of the Legislative Council on Jan. 31 about the landscape of interim committees, funding mechanics and reporting deadlines for the 2025 interim.

Berger described several committee types that meet during the legislative interim: year‑round bodies such as the Joint Budget Committee and Legislative Council; statutory interim committees created by statute that primarily work in the interim; committees created by letter (requested by members); and committees created by Executive Committee resolution for new circumstances that arise after session. Attachments A and B in the staff memo list 25 year‑round and statutory interim committees scheduled to meet in 2025; Berger also noted the Property Tax Commission and the Wildfire Matters Review Committee are slated to repeal this year.

Berger explained that the interim budget calculation is straightforward — number of meetings times number of members times per‑diem cost — and the budget includes a set‑aside for letter interim committees and executive‑committee resolution committees. She added that interim committees must report legislative recommendations by Nov. 15, 2025, and that some potential cost‑saving options are listed in the memo; some options would require statute change.

Committee members asked whether eliminating letter committees would reduce staff FTE; Berger and other staff explained that Legislative Council staff work year‑round and would still perform staffing duties, so savings are limited mainly to member travel/per diem and occasional sergeant-of-arms days. No formal decision was taken; the matter remains open for future budget consideration.