The House of Representatives ordered temporary committees on rules and on ways and means and approved a series of procedural measures, the chamber announced during a brief session that ended with an adjournment to Thursday at 11 a.m.

The temporary committee on rules will consist of members of the 194th General Court who served on the rules committee at the end of the 193rd General Court; the speaker of the House will not be a member of that temporary committee, the order said. The temporary committee on ways and means will likewise consist of members of the 194th General Court who were on the committee at the end of the 193rd General Court. Both temporary committees were authorized to meet jointly with their Senate counterparts and to perform the duties of the permanent committees while in effect.

Those temporary committees were ordered to cease to exist once permanent committees are appointed, and any matters pending before the temporary committees will be treated as pending before the permanent committees once constituted, the orders said.

The House also temporarily waived certain house rules to act on the orders. After motions to suspend the rules, “All those in favor, say aye,” the Speaker of the House said, and “The ayes have it,” indicating the voice votes carried and the orders were adopted. The orders included a directive that, notwithstanding House Rule 22, the council to the House of Representatives may perfect bills and resolves ordered to a third reading by the House, or amended by the Senate, and resolutions prior to adoption, even before members of the committee on bills in the third reading are appointed.

Clerk-read orders specified that appointments made to the temporary committees are not subject to the provisions of House Rules 18 and 18A. The orders also authorized the temporary committees to utilize joint and House committee resources with subject-matter expertise.

The House took the procedural actions with brief voice votes and no recorded roll-call tallies in the transcript. The chamber recessed briefly and then adopted an order adjourning the House to meet Thursday next at 11 a.m. The Speaker then moved that the House stand adjourned, and the ayes prevailed.

Although the session covered several procedural and housekeeping orders, no debate over policy substance or appropriations appears in the transcript. The orders focus on temporary committee structure and short-term procedural authority until permanent committees are appointed.

Votes at a glance: The transcript records multiple voice votes on suspending rules and adopting the orders; each is recorded as carried by voice ("The ayes have it") and the orders were adopted. No roll-call vote tallies or individual yes/no votes are included in the transcript.