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Wed: rules, rules, rules....
posted at 2008-07-16 12:52 | Last modified 2008-07-16 14:06
Senate leaders have scuttled two House bills (so far) today on account of “rules.” Senate rules for short session say they can only consider non-budget bills if they’ve come out of an agency or a study committee that the Senate took part in.
Buncombe Rep. Charles Thomas’s fuel-efficient motor fleet bill met its demise in Sen. Finance. Chair Dan Clodfelter (D-Meck) pointed out that the bill doesn’t affect the 08-09 budget, plus it came out of the Energy Policy Council (not a Senate panel or an agency), so it’s ineligible for Senate consideration twice over. (HT: Jordan Schrader)
Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand used the same rationale to scuttle the involuntary annexation moratorium – a bill that came out of a House Select Committee. I’ll post that audio here as soon as I can. Update: Hear it below.
Listen Now!
Parliamentary whiplash
The bill that has “more lives than a stack of cats,” the Durham County Meals Tax referendum, pulled off another Lazarus move this afternoon.
H2690 narrowly made it through the House, but failed to pass Senate Finance at an “around-the-desk” meeting on the Senate floor.
Durham Senator Floyd McKissick, who’s handling the bill, said he doesn’t think everyone on the committee a) was present and b) could hear the call for the vote.
The latter’s a pretty common problem in those floor meetings – picture a huddle of lawmakers, lobbyists, staff, and reporters, three or four people deep, straining to hear someone speak over the background noise of a big, loud room.
Anyway, McKissick tried again an hour later, at yet another around-the-desk Finance meeting. He found someone on the prevailing “no” side (I’m not sure who) to move to reconsider the vote. That motion passed, and then the bill did, too. Geez, guys, make up your minds.
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