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Senators receive rules reports, bill introductions and a bill-browser tech briefing
Summary
The Senate accepted rules committee recommendations assigning bills to standing committees, heard introductions of several new bills, and received a floor demonstration of the legislature's bill browser, calendar tools and instant-messaging features meant to aid lawmakers during the session.
During the Jan. 16 Senate session, clerks and committee chairs presented several procedural items and technology briefings to help senators navigate the 44-day legislative session.
Clerk Carolie Peterson read House communications transmitting HB 18 (interstate compact for adult offender supervision), HB 32 (unauthorized charges on utilities amendments) and HB 33 (clarification of time limits for reunification services). The Rules Committee, chaired by Michael Waddup, reported assignment of multiple bills and resolutions to standing committees and to the second-reading calendar; senators adopted both committee reports by voice vote.
Senators also heard brief introductions of newly filed Senate bills: SB 55 (nonpartisan election commission) by Senator Edgar Allen and SB 56 (driving-under-the-influence penalty amendments) by Senator Hale; those measures were read for the first time and referred to Rules.
Senator Steele provided a step-by-step demonstration of the chamber's bill browser and related tools: finding bills by number or topic, viewing calendars for both chambers, accessing committee agendas, configuring personalized bill-tracking with color coding, adjusting font sizes for readability, and using an Instant Messenger function for floor communication. Steele distributed handouts and offered individual assistance to members who needed help with the system.
Clerks indicated that many bills will be routed through the usual standing committees, and that bond-related funding requests would follow statutory routing if they required statutory language.
The procedural and technical briefings were presented to prepare senators for fast-moving calendar activity later in the session.
