Throughout the 120 day session there are several deadlines and if you miss any of the deadlines your bill is essentially "dead". However, things have a way of coming back to life has we rapidly approach the June 6th deadline.
Franchise Fees - Franchise fees are that tax you see on some of your utility bills. There was a bill introduced at the beginning of the session that would eliminate these fees. If you say this phrase around the building, you'll immediately be surrounded by the various local governments' lobbyists.
- Died at the beginning of the session, in Senator Townsend's Commerce and Labor Committee. When it came up for a vote and Senator Tiffany broke party lines and voted against the bill.
- Was made into an amendment on an Assembly bill last Friday, but was pulled by the sponsor of the amendment, in the middle of the deadline madness. (Those few hours were kinda funny though, watching the local governments scramble!)
The Graduated Driver's License - The GDL is the pet project bill of Senator Cegavske. This bill says that any driver under the age of 18 would hold a restricted driver's license where various requirements and regulations would be placed on the minor driver. Senator Cegavske has been trying her whole career in Carson to pass this bill.
- Died on the Assembly side, the Assembly Democrats have their own version of the GDL bill this year.
- Was made into an amendment on said Assembly bill by the Senate.
- Assembly voted not to concur with Senator Cegavske's amendment which means that if she doesn't remove her amendment this bill (amendment and all) will go to a conference committee, where anything can happen. (This is the farthest this bill has gotten since the Senator began her campaign.)
These are just two examples, but it shows that anything can happened and nothing is dead until sine die. Bills that are still alive are now back in their original houses, unless they're exempt bills, in which case they can be anywhere. Those that were not amended on the opposite side, go immediately to the Governor, while those that were, must go back to their original house for a concur or not concur vote on the amendment. If they decide to concur, the bill goes to the Governor, otherwise the bill goes back to the second house and they have the option to rescind or not rescind their amendment. Again, if they rescind, the bill goes to the Governor; if not, a conference committee of three legislators from each side will be appointed. Each bill is allowed two conference committees. If an agreement still cannot be reach, the bill dies for lack of an agreement between the two houses.
Now is not the time to become complacent. Just because you think you're done, you're not. All your bills may be signed by the Governor; doesn't matter, a hurtful amendment can always so up at the 11th hour. Something will rear it's ugly little head and throw you into a tailspin. Now is the time to be on your toes, to watch out for those around you; everyone is trying to cut a deal and everyone is trying to protect their clients. Things are going to start happening behind closed doors (the budget) and very late at night. (re: The 110th Day)
You're never ahead of the game in this building, you're always just treading water.
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2 comments:
Very informative blog....I am constantly amazed by the manuvering and minipulating that goes on in Government....It's amazing anything actually gets done...in the meanwhile the IRS has said that the refund on car registrations would not be taxable, so where does that leave that situation? Don't let these last few days get you down, your almost home....
The Governor's bill on the refund has been introduced. However, there are still issues, because the people he really wants to help with this refund, ie: businesses since they tend to purchase multiple vechiles, will still have to pay taxes on this money since they wrote it off on their tax returns.
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