Today I started the day on the House floor, where they did second reading of bills, which is an opportunity for members to debate and ask questions about a bill. Things were especially heated as Rep. Blanc was accused of impugning the state legislature, which was a violation of the constitution; however, they eventually let it pass.
Another interesting moment was during one of Rep. Ugenti-Rita's bill, which after much debate eventually had to be called into division, meaning that the vocal vote of aye/nay was too close to call and had to be done by way of standing/sitting. When the division resulted in a vote of 26/25 against the bill, the house was forced to go into a roll call, meaning people had to press their buttons to vote as with a third read. Again, the bill failed to pass; however, at the end of the session, Rep. Ugenti-Rita requested that her bill be placed back on the calendar to be voted upon again. Once again, the vocal vote was too close to call, and it once again had to be counted by a sitting/standing vote. it actually passed, so the bill is placed back onto the calendar for a second reading again (so none of the members get to officially vote yet). It was very dramatic and tense- oh and also, the bill was about greenhouses.
I had to leave the floor at 5, though the House continued until 10. But before I left, I managed to hear what is the quote of the day. Rep. Allen was praising Rep. Leach for his efforts in working with both parties to reach a favorable bill that they could all agree with, which I also thought was commendable. Even when legislators disagree, they often reach out to their opponents in attempts to reach an agreement, and if not that, an agreement to disagree. I would like to tip my hat to the legislature for respecting one another throughout this session and for extending hands towards their opponents to attempt to reach an understanding of one another
Wednesday, February 22, 2017
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Wow, it sounds like the debate is getting more heated every day! I guess that's just the greenhouse effect. I'm glad they're able to stay civil even after such close votes.
ReplyDeletehaha nice pun. I agree, they have kept very civil even though the debate is very intense.
DeleteHey Mimi! Is there a particular voting process that goes into requesting a bill to be placed back on the voting calendar as Rep. Ugenti-Rita accomplished?
ReplyDeleteHi Ameya, putting things back onto the calendar requires the same kind of aye/nay vocal vote that they use on a second read.
DeleteSounds like a lot of trouble over something as trivial as greenhouses. It doesn't seem like an issue that would be partisan, but was it? Have most of the readings turned partisan?
ReplyDeleteInterestingly enough, there was oppositions from both Democrats and Republicans. Many things end up being partisan because of political beliefs (ie not really because of the party exerting control over legislators), but there have been very trivial things that have become contentious: for example, the Rep. Ugenti-Rita introduced a bill to authorize a license plate for the science center, and that debate also lasted over an hour...
DeleteIt sounds like you have had another interesting week. However, I would just like to ask one question though. What specifically was the bill about regarding greenhouses?
ReplyDeleteThe bill was categorizing large greenhouses as personal property rather than real property for taxing purposes, which some people were arguing would take money away from rural schools (from my understanding at least, it was very technical so I didn't understand too much about it at first)
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