06-R 082

2006 -- H 7043 SUBSTITUTE A AS AMENDED

Enacted 02/15/06

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

ADOPTING RULES OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FOR THE YEARS 2005- 2006

Introduced By: Representatives Kilmartin, San Bento, Ginaitt, Williamson, and

Gallison

Date Introduced: February 01, 2006

     RESOLVED, That the rules for the House of Representatives adopted by the House of

Representatives at its January session, A.D. 2005, entitled "House Resolution Adopting Rules of

the House of Representatives for the Years 2005-2006", be and the same are hereby amended to

read as follows:

      (5)(a) At the commencement of each day's session the roll shall be called, or taken by

use of the electronic voting system and if a quorum be present, the Speaker shall proceed to the

order of business. After the approval of the journal the order of business shall be as follows:

     (i) Reports of standing and select committees.

     (ii) Introduction and reference of new business.

     (iii) Communications, including communications from the Senate.

     (iv) Unfinished business in which the House was engaged at the time of last adjournment.

     (v) Consent calendar.

     (vi) Calendar.

     (vii) Introduction of guests and announcements.

     (viii) Matters of personal privilege.

     (ix) Recess or adjournment.

     (b) A representative desiring to introduce a bill or resolution shall file the same with the

Clerk of the House. At the request of any representative, an announcement upon presentation to

the Speaker may be placed directly in the House Journal noting his or her absence from session.

     (c) Except as provided in Rule 34, all bills and resolutions shall be filed no later than

February 17, 2005 (for the 2005 session) and February 16, 2006 (for the 2006 session). The

provisions of this section shall not apply to city or town bills, to bills for the reinstatement of

corporate charters, or to bills relating to the solemnization of marriages.

     (d) Any bill or resolution introduced on or before April 14, 2005 (for the 2005 session)

and on or before April 12, 2006 (for the 2006 session)

     (i) if filed prior to the convening of the session, shall be in order for the first reading and,

where appropriate, assignment to committee, on that day, and

     (ii) if filed after the convening of the session, shall be in order for the first reading and,

where appropriate, assignment to committee, on the next legislative day and shall be considered a

part of that day's business, provided that the Speaker may direct that a given measure may be

treated in accord with subparagraph (i) above.

     All bills or resolutions introduced after April 14, 2005 (for the 2005 session) and after

April 12, 2006 (for the 2006 session) shall be in order for the first reading and, where appropriate,

assignment to committee, on the day of introduction.

     (e) The Clerk of the House shall cause the title and numbers of all bills and resolutions

introduced to be published in the House Journal for the day on which said bill or resolution is

deemed, as herein provided, to have been introduced.

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

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

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

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

conformity with these rules.

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

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

present.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

take up at the stated meeting must be re-posted as stated above and shall be placed at the top of

such subsequent posted list. Such postings shall be made electronically, and on the House

bulletin board or on the Legislative Data bulletin board. Copies of all posted bills or resolutions

shall be provided in print or electronically to all committee members and principal sponsors. A

committee shall not hear any said bill or resolution without such notice except by the consent of

a majority of its members and with at least one (1) day's notification to the principal sponsor. The

sponsor may, however, waive such one-day notification. The time requirements of this section

shall not apply to House bills returned from the Senate with amendment.

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

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

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

thereof as provided in these rules. No committee shall hear more than twenty-five (25) bills

(exclusive of city and town bills and those to be placed on the consent calendar) at any one (1)

meeting.

     (e) Upon receipt of a written request by the Chair for committee consideration from the

principal House sponsor of a bill or resolution, a copy of which is to be given to the recording

clerk, the committee shall grant to said principal House sponsor a hearing on any said bill

or resolution within thirty (30) calendar days of the request, and provided  further, that said

committee shall grant to the principal House sponsor  consideration of his or her bill or resolution

prior to the deadline for committee action on such bill or resolution. The principal sponsor, with

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

to the Chair, which notice shall be posted electronically. A hearing postponed twice at the

sponsor’s request need not be re-scheduled. For the purpose of the rule, consideration shall mean

a majority vote on one (1) of the following:

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

passage;

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

House with a recommendation of passage; or

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

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

passage; or

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

held for further study.

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

hereof, the bill or resolution shall be lost.

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

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

notation thereon.

     (f) Once a committee has considered a bill or resolution the principal House sponsor shall

be notified in writing or electronically by the end of the second legislative day following such

action including the vote tally within the committee and the date thereof, prior to the report being

made to the full House. Committee Chairs shall bring reports of committee actions to the floor no

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

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

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

the subject matter of the vote remains in the possession of the committee.

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

subject to the above time limits.

     (g) In the event a committee shall fail to afford consideration to any bill or resolution

within the prescribed time, the principal sponsor may report such failure in writing to the Speaker

of the House and the Speaker thereupon may order the immediate discharge of the bill or

resolution from a committee to the House floor.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

considered a part of that day’s business.

      House Rule 26(e) through (h) shall not apply to any bill or resolution which shall

have originated in the Senate.

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

House committee unless the committee has held a hearing on that bill or resolution by April 14,

2005 (or April 12, 2006, in the case of 2006), and thereafter the committees of the House shall

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

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

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

to have a fiscal impact after April 14, 2005 (or April 12, 2006, in the case of 2006), except

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

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

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

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

later than April 14, 2005 (or April 12, 2006, in the case of 2006).

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

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

committee on or before April 14, 2005 (or April 12, 2006, in the case of 2006), and shall have

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

     (k) Transfers – With the approval of the Speaker, a bill or resolution may be transferred

by the chairperson from one committee to another at any time. The committee receiving the

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

     (31) (a) There shall be attached to every public bill or resolution when first introduced an

explanation of such bill or resolution indicating the proposed changes, and/or the statute or

existing law which such bill or resolution purports to amend. Each original bill or resolution

introduced shall be accompanied by at least four (4) copies which may be typewritten

or reproduced by any legible mechanical process, and the Clerk of the House may decline to

receive and process bills and resolutions not accompanied by such copies.

     (b) When any bill or resolution is offered which is intended to amend any part or parts of

an existing statute, or the Constitution of the State of Rhode Island, or the House Rules, any part

or parts intended to be stricken shall be contained in the bill or resolution and by

appropriate mechanical mark, shall be crossed out. All new matter contained in the bill or

resolution shall be underlined, so that the new matter may be easily discerned. Existing language

not intended to be amended shall be reproduced without change.

     (c) "Public bill" shall include all bills or resolutions which in any way have general

application throughout the state or which are of a nature for which the constitution requires

special treatment, and bills which relate to an individual's pension or retirement benefits. Bills or

resolutions of a private or local nature shall not be considered "Public bills" and shall include:

those which pertain to a particular city or town or local entity; those making claims against the

state; those which pertain to private corporation charters and amendments thereto and restoration

thereof, and to amendments to authorize holdings by non-profit organizations of a charitable,

civic, library or like nature; resolutions memorializing congress, or of congratulations or

expressing sympathy or condolences; resolutions requesting the several departments of state

government to grant some privilege, consideration or relief; and others of like private and local

nature.

     (d) All bills and resolutions, private as well as public, shall be prepared by the Legislative

Council, and the Clerk of the House may decline to accept for introduction any bill, resolution or

transmittal not in conformity herewith. Once introduced and referred, all bills and resolutions

shall be printed and made available electronically, except resolutions of congratulation and

condolence.

     (e) All bills and resolutions which have been introduced at the request of one of the

general officers shall bear a stamp indicating such request.

     (i) Upon presentation of testimony before a committee, the prime sponsor of a bill or

resolution shall provide to the committee the name of any individual, group or organization

responsible for the substantive basis or text of the bill.

     (f) A prime sponsor may withdraw a bill or resolution previously introduced at any time,

upon written request to the Clerk of the House on a form which the Clerk of the House shall

provide.

     (g)(i) A bill or resolution may be filed by any member or member-elect by registered

mail at state expense or in person with the Clerk of the House at any time from November 15 to

the day prior to the commencement of the regular annual session. The clerk shall immediately

date and number such bill or resolution and order it printed, and made available for the first

reading on the second day of the succeeding session.

     (ii) Only the bills or resolutions filed by members elected and qualified shall receive the

first reading.

     (iii) In the event that any member or member-elect shall die after filing and before the

first reading, the death of said member or member-elect shall constitute automatic withdrawal of

said bill or resolution and automatic withdrawal of the number of said bill or resolution and said

number shall not be used again during the legislative session; provided, however, that where a bill

or resolution shall have had more than one sponsor, said bill or resolution and number shall not be

withdrawn and the member whose name appears second on said bill or resolution shall become

the prime sponsor.

      (34) A member may introduce a public bill or resolution after the third Thursday in

February only if, one (1) day previous to such introduction, the member shall have notified the

House of his or her intention to introduce said bill or resolution by reading the title and giving a

brief explanation of the contents thereof. A member may avail himself or herself of the

opportunity afforded by this rule three (3) times only in each calendar year, and in no event after

the fortieth (40th) legislative day, provided that these limitations shall not apply to municipal bills,

bills to create or extend the reporting dates of study commissions, appropriations and budget bills

(regular or supplemental) or to bills which under these rules are eligible for placement on the

consent calendar, and provided further that this rule shall not apply to any matter submitted with

the approval of the Speaker.

     House committees may, but shall not be obliged to, hear and consider public bills or

resolutions approved for introduction pursuant to this rule  notwithstanding the provisions of Rule

26(i).

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LC01515/SUB A/2

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