2013 -- H 5351

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LC01083

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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2013

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H O U S E R E S O L U T I O N

AMENDING THE RULES OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FOR THE YEARS

2011 - 2012

     Introduced By: Representative Spencer E. Dickinson

     Date Introduced: February 07, 2013

     Referred To: House Rules

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     RESOLVED, That Rules 11 and 14 of the rules for the House of Representatives

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adopted by the House of Representatives at its January session, A.D. 2011, entitled “House

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Resolution Adopting Rules of the House of Representatives for the Years 2011-2012,” be and are

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hereby amended to read as follows:

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     Rules Pertaining to Committees

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     (11)(a) The following standing primary and secondary committees shall be appointed

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each year in the month of January or as soon as convenient after the adoption of the House Rules:

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     PRIMARY COMMITTEES:

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     A committee on corporations

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     A committee on environment and natural resources

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     A committee on finance

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     A committee on health, education and welfare

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     A committee on judiciary

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     A committee on labor

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     SECONDARY COMMITTEES:

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     A committee on municipal government

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     A committee on rules

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     A committee on oversight

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     A committee on small business

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     A committee on veterans’ affairs.

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     (b) The Speaker shall appoint all standing committees and create such other

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subcommittees and committees as may be required from time to time and appoint thereto. Each

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committee shall have eleven (11) members, except for the finance committee which shall have

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seventeen (17) members. Each elected member of the house except for the speaker, the majority

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leader, and the minority leader, shall be a member of one primary committee. The speaker, the

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majority leader, and the minority leader shall be exofficio voting members of all committees.

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Membership of all committees shall be determined according to members’ requests, with priority

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given first to members serving on the committee during the previous legislative session, and then

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by seniority. All subcommittees and committees shall have proportionate minority membership

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when feasible. The Speaker, in consultation with the Minority Leader, shall be the appointing

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authority for minority membership on standing committees and subcommittees thereof, joint

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committees, boards and commissions. All vacancies occurring in any committee and

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subcommittee after they have once been named shall be filled in like manner by the Speaker. The

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Speaker, Majority Leader and Minority Leader shall be ex officio members with voting rights of

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all House committees but shall not be counted for purposes of determining a quorum. The

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Speaker shall have the authority to appoint the chair from among the five (5) longest serving

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members of the committee. The speaker shall also have the authority to appoint the, vice chair,

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and the secretary of each committee, and any subcommittees that may be needed as set forth in

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subsection (g) herein. In the event that the chair of a committee is unable to serve due to

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incapacity for medical or other reasons, the Speaker may appoint an acting chair for the period of

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such incapacity, which acting chair shall have all of the powers and duties of the chair. The chair

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shall determine all questions of procedure before the committee in cases not provided for in these

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rules.

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     (c) A committee shall not consider any bill in the absence of a quorum, which shall

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consist of a majority of the committee's membership. at least the chair or vice chair, plus six (6)

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other members of the committee. All business of the committee, including, but not limited to,

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votes, deliberations, or taking testimony at hearings, shall be done in the presence of a quorum.

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In the event of the departure of a member from a meeting, such that a quorum is no longer

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present, the chair or acting chair shall declare a recess or adjournment of the committee.

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     (d) All committee meetings shall be open to the public, but public participation shall be

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limited to testimony on the matters before the committee. The chair of any committee shall have

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the authority to limit the length of a witness’s testimony in order to afford all witnesses the

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opportunity to be heard, to limit repetitiveness and duplication, or to maintain order and decorum.

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     (e) It shall be the duty of the committee on finance to take into consideration all

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propositions relative to the revenue, to inquire into the state of the public debt and to report from

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time to time their opinion thereon and such propositions relative thereto as to them shall seem

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expedient.

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     (f) Upon introduction of the annual state budget to the House on behalf of the Governor,

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the budget shall be referred to the finance committee. Within two (2) weeks following receipt

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thereof, the finance committee's fiscal advisor shall provide to each member of the House a

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concise summary of budget issues. Within three (3) weeks following the receipt of the budget, the

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committee shall schedule such meetings as it deems necessary to receive comment on the budget

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as a whole from all House members who wish to appear before it for that purpose.

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     (g) The Speaker may appoint from time to time subcommittees of a given standing

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committee, which shall consist only of members of the committee from which it was appointed.

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The chair of each standing committee shall be considered a member of each subcommittee of

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such committee. Each subcommittee may hear testimony on bills and resolutions falling within

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the subject matter of its charge and shall report to the committee from which it was appointed.

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Subcommittees will otherwise conduct themselves in conformity with these rules. The Speaker

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shall appoint the chair of each subcommittee.

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     (h) No member shall belong to more than one secondary committee.

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     (i) Primary committee meetings and secondary committee meetings shall be scheduled at

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different times such that no member, with the exception of ex officio members, shall be

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scheduled for more than one meeting at any given time.

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     Rules Pertaining to Bills and Petitions

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     (14)(a) No bill or resolution shall be considered or acted upon by the House if objection

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is made unless the same has been considered by, reported, or recalled from a committee thereof,

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from a joint committee, or by two-thirds (2/3) of members present. This rule shall not apply to a

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House Bill of which the Senate duplicate has passed the House, and provided further that the

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Speaker may at any time order a duplicate bill received from the Senate or a Senate bill after the

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budget bill shall have passed the House, onto the calendar.

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     (b) When a bill or resolution is postponed indefinitely, the same shall not be acted upon

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again during the session.

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     (c) No bill or resolution shall be passed or concurred in without two (2) readings. The

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first reading shall take place by acceptance of the bill or resolution and publication in the House

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Journal and the second after it has been placed upon the calendar. No bill or resolution upon the

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calendar shall be taken up for consideration unless copies thereof, in the form in which it was

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reported from committee, shall have been made available in print or electronically to the

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members no later than the rise of the House on the legislative day before the day on which it shall

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be in order for consideration. No matter of business on the calendar shall be considered upon its

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merits prior to the legislative day after it shall have been placed on the calendar except by vote of

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the majority of the members present and voting. The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply

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to Senate bills received by the House which are duplicates of House bills.

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     (d) No more than fifty (50) twenty-five (25) public bills shall be considered upon their

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merits during any one (1) legislative day and no bill shall be brought before the body after 11:30

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p.m., provided, however, that House bills returned from the Senate, Senate bills which are

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duplicates of and identical to House bills, corporate charter revocation bills, and solemnization of

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marriage bills and bills removed from the consent calendar may be considered notwithstanding

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this limit 8:00 PM. The legislative day of the House shall normally begin at 4:00 PM. The

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legislative day of the house shall not extend beyond 10:00 PM, and in no case shall the legislature

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remain in session after 10:00 PM. This 10:00 PM limit shall not be waived by the body. This

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10:00 PM limit shall not apply to the meetings of committees. Provided further, that Senate bills

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which are duplicates of and identical to House bills, and House bills returned from the Senate,

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may without objection be bundled and passed by one vote provided that they are provided to

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members electronically prior to consideration. In the case of bundled bills that contain identical

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and duplicate Senate bills, at the request of the Majority and Minority Leaders the House journal

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will reflect that the vote of the members on the bill is consistent with his or her vote on the

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duplicate House bill previously passed. Prior to the vote on a duplicate bill, it should be stated for

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the record and be made known to the body that the bill is identical.

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     (e) The budget bill shall be prepared by Legislative Council. The budget bill shall not be

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considered by the House unless copies thereof as approved by the finance committee have been

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available to the members for seven (7) calendar days. For the purposes of calculating the seven

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(7) day requirement, the day of passage by the Finance Committee shall not be counted but the

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scheduled day for floor action shall be included in the calculation. No amendment which is

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intended to make a substantive change in the budget bill may be offered other than by the Chair

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of the finance committee, except with the agreement of two-thirds (2/3) of the members present,

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unless the text thereof shall have been submitted to the Legislative Council and made available to

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the members two (2) calendar days prior to the day on which the budget bill shall be in order for

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consideration.

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     (f) An amendment which was germane when prepared, and which was offered in a timely

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fashion, but is no longer germane because of an intervening amendment, may, with the agreement

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of the majority leader and minority leader, be revised orally or in writing by the sponsor without

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renewed compliance with the requirements hereof.

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     (g) After the 50th legislative day, bills or resolutions received back from the Senate with

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amendments requiring House concurrence shall, with the agreement of the House sponsor and the

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Majority Leader, be placed on the calendar in order for the day upon which they are received.

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LC01083

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