2012 -- H 8105

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LC02454

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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2012

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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: Representatives Costa, and Reilly

     Date Introduced: May 01, 2012

     Referred To: House Rules

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     RESOLVED, That Rule 12 of the House of Representatives which was adopted by the

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House of Representatives at its January session, A.D. 2011, entitled “HOUSE RESOLUTION

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ADOPTING RULES OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FOR THE YEARS 2011-

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2012”, be and is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     (12)(a) Committees shall take into consideration all such petitions, resolves, bills, matters

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or things as may be referred to them by the House with power to report by bill or otherwise;

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provided, however, that committees shall, whenever possible, consider all bills of substantially

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the same or of a similar nature at the same time in a manner that is otherwise in conformity with

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these rules.

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     (b) A committee shall not consider any public bill or resolution not previously distributed

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in print or electronically to its members except by a vote of the majority of the members of the

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committee.

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     (c) The Chair of every committee shall post, in print and electronically, at least forty-

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eight (48) hours prior to any committee meeting, a list by number and title of the bills and

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resolutions to be heard at that meeting. Such postings shall be made electronically and on the

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Legislative Data Bulletin Board. The electronic posting shall be considered the official date of the

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posting. In the event that the electronic posting system is inoperable then the official posting shall

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be the printed posting on the Legislative Data Bulletin Board. The Chair shall limit such listings

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to the number of bills or resolutions he or she reasonably expects can be taken up by the

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committee at that meeting. Any bill or resolution so posted which the committee is not able to

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take up at the stated meeting must be re-posted as stated above. Such postings shall be made

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electronically, and on the House bulletin board or on the Legislative Data bulletin board. Copies

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of all posted bills or resolutions shall be provided in print or electronically to all committee

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members and principal sponsors. A committee shall not hear any said bill or resolution without

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such notice except by the consent of a majority of its members and with at least one (1) day's

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notification to the principal House sponsor. The sponsor may, however, waive such one-day

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notification. The time requirements of this section shall not apply to House bills returned from the

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Senate with amendment, or, after the 50th legislative day, to any bill originating in the Senate.

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     (d) Every standing committee shall meet at least once weekly if any requests for hearings

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on or consideration of bills or resolutions are pending before it. The right to be heard on any such

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bill or resolution may be granted, upon written or electronic request, to the principal sponsor

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thereof as provided in these rules. No committee shall hear more than thirty (30) bills (exclusive

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of city and town bills, those to be placed on the consent calendar, and duplicate senate bills that

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have previously passed) at any one (1) meeting.

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     (e) Upon receipt of a written request from the principal House sponsor of a bill or

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resolution, a copy of which is to be given to the recording clerk of the committee, the committee

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shall grant to said principal House sponsor a hearing on any said bill or resolution within thirty

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(30) calendar days of the request, and provided further, that said committee shall grant to the

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principal House sponsor consideration of his or her bill or resolution prior to the deadline for

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committee action on such bill or resolution. The principal sponsor, with the concurrence of the

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Chair, may cancel a scheduled hearing with twenty-four (24) hours’ notice to the Chair, which

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notice shall be posted electronically. A hearing postponed twice at the sponsor’s request need not

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be re-scheduled. For the purpose of the rule, consideration shall mean a majority vote on one (1)

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of the following:

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     (i) a motion to report the bill or resolution to the House with a recommendation of

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passage;

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     (ii) a motion to report the bill or resolution as amended, or in substitute form, to the

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House with a recommendation of passage; or

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     (iii) a motion to report the bill or resolution to the House without recommendation; or

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     (iv) a motion to report the bill or resolution to the House with a recommendation of no

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passage.; or

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     (v) a motion to report the bill or resolution to the House with a recommendation that it be

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held for further study. A motion to report the bill or resolution to the House with a

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recommendation that it be held for further study shall not be consideration for the purpose of this

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rule. Provided, this subsection shall not apply to bills before the House finance committee.

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     In the event of a tie vote on any of the motions specified in (i), (ii), (iii), or (iv) or (v)

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hereof, the bill or resolution shall be lost.

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     The originals of bills or resolutions which have failed in committee shall be transmitted

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by the committee clerks to the Secretary of State for the State Archives, with an appropriate

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notation thereon at the time specified in R.I.G.L.

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     (f) Committee Chairs shall bring reports of committee actions to the floor no later than

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two (2) weeks following the committee votes thereon, provided that this shall not apply to the

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Committee on Finance, nor shall it apply to bills being held for further study under subdivision

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(e)(v). A committee member may move reconsideration of any vote taken so long as the bill or

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resolution which was the subject of the vote remains in the possession of the committee and that

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the motion is made by a member voting in the majority. A motion to reconsider in committee

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shall not be debated.

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     Bills or resolutions concerning appropriations, revenue or expenditures shall not be

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subject to the above time limits.

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     (g) In the event a committee fails to afford consideration to any bill or resolution within

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the prescribed time where such consideration has been properly requested, the principal sponsor

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may report such failure in writing to the Speaker of the House and the Speaker thereupon may

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order the immediate discharge of the bill or resolution from a committee to the House floor.

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     (h) All bills or resolutions reported from committee shall be placed on the calendar or,

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pursuant to the restrictions of these rules, on the consent calendar for the required period of time

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according to these rules before House consideration. Bills and resolutions reported from

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committees and received by the Clerk of the House prior to the convening of the session on a

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given legislative day shall be deemed to have been received, and therefore in order to be placed

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upon the appropriate calendar, as of that day. Bills and resolutions so received after the convening

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of the session on a given legislative day shall be deemed to have been received, and therefore in

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order to be placed upon the appropriate calendar, on the next legislative day and shall be

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considered a part of that day’s business.

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     House Rule 12(e) regarding the necessity to hold a hearing at the sponsor’s request

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through 12(h) pertaining to the timing of placing a bill onto the floor calendar shall not apply to

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any bill or resolution which shall have originated in the Senate.

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     (i) No public bill or resolution which originated in the House shall be considered by a

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House committee unless the committee has held a hearing on that bill or resolution by April 28,

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2011 (or April 12, 2012, in the case of 2012), and thereafter the committees of the House shall

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not consider public bills or resolutions except those which have been acted upon by the Senate

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and transmitted by the Senate to the House of Representatives, provided however, that the

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committee on finance may hear and consider such House bills, acts or resolutions as it deems to

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have a fiscal impact after April 28, 2011 (or April 12, 2012, in the case of 2012), except as

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provided in section (j) hereof, and provided further, that each other House committee may

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complete consideration of not more than three (3) House bills or resolutions after said date, on

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which such committee had not been able to complete action, upon approval by the Speaker of a

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written request from the Chair. All such requests must be filed with the Clerk of the House no

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later than April 28, 2011 (or April 12, 2012, in the case of 2012). The provisions of this paragraph

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shall not apply to House bills of which Senate duplicates have passed the House.

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     (j) No House bill which relates to an individual's pension or retirement shall be accepted

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as a committee report from the committee on finance unless it shall have been considered by the

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committee on or before April 28, 2011(or April 12, 2012, in the case of 2012), and shall have

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been heard in the committee no later than one (1) week prior to that date.

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     (k) Transfers –The Speaker or the Speaker’s designee may direct the transfer of a bill or

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resolution from one committee to another at any time. The committee receiving the transferred

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bill or resolution must comply with the posting and time requirements of this section.

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LC02454

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