House: 412:38 Senate 302:26 Total 714:64
So we've just passed the half-way point of the 90 day 2nd Session of the 26th Alaska Legislature. 412 and 302 bills have been introduced in the House and Senate respectively. 38 from the House and 26 from the Senate have passed both houses.
Each Legislature convenes for two years, one session each year. So, some of these bills were introduced in the 2009 session and are still hanging around. From the legislative website here's the official tally as of today, Sunday, March 7, 2010:
That means the House has passed 9.2% of the bills introduced and the Senate has passed 8.6%. These batting averages would get you dropped from a baseball team. But they have 45 or so days left.
And, in fairness, not all bills are equal. Some are simple and some are far more complex.
So where are all the bills? Bills get assigned to committees that have jurisdiction over the issues they cover. For instance, the Resources Committee deals with the programs and activities of the Departments of Fish and Game, Natural Resources, and Environmental Conservation. I'm told that since the legislature has been cut back from 120 days to 90 days, bills tend to be assigned to fewer committees.
Anyway, a bill gets sent to a committee, which discusses it, possibly amends it, then, if it votes yeah, sends it on to the next committee. If the bill has some sort of financial impact (and sometimes even if it is minimal) it has to go through the Finance Committee.
Actually, I skipped a bit. The whole procedure, step by step, is spelled out in a document linked on the Legislative Publications page and it's called Legislative Process in Alaska. The next steps come directly from there:
Click on Finance Committee now and you find there are now 72 bills sitting in the House Finance Committee.
The House Rules Committee - the last stop before being voted on the House floor - has 21 bills.
Health and Human Services has 41.
Resources has 38.
State Affairs has 37.
Labor and Commerce has 35
Judiciary has 28.
Transportation has 25.
Education has 20.
Community and Regional Affairs has 19.
Energy has 15.
Fisheries has 15.
Military and Veterans Affairs has 1.
I've left out all the House Resolutions (HR) and House Joint Resolutions (HJR) and Senate Bills (SB). And note, that these can change every day, so the numbers will change.
The Legislators clearly spend a lot of time writing, pushing, and debating bills that never will become law. They seem to do this because they think it impresses voters and contributors. They also do this because they believe in the issues they are working on. Sometimes both motivations overlap, sometimes not. People have to ask more questions of their legislators.
I'm not completely sure what's still likely to pass. The Campaign Expenditure Disclosure bills - responding to the Citizens United Supreme Court case - appears to have bi-partisan support. This will require disclosure of the funders of independent issue ads. Even with this, everyone expects corporations and to a lesser extent labor unions, to target individual candidates who vote against their interests. Without any of these bills passing, they can do that without the public knowing who's paying for the ads.
It also looks like a lot of the remaining time will be spent on the gas pipeline and on a push by some lawmakers to lower oil and gas taxes.
Each Legislature convenes for two years, one session each year. So, some of these bills were introduced in the 2009 session and are still hanging around. From the legislative website here's the official tally as of today, Sunday, March 7, 2010:
Bill/Resolution Statistics (26th Legislature)
| HOUSE | SENATE | TOTALS | ||||
| INTRO | PASSED BOTH | INTRO | PASSED BOTH | INTRO | PASSED BOTH | |
| Bills | 412 | 38 | 302 | 26 | 714 | 64 |
| Joint Res. | 52 | 13 | 29 | 5 | 81 | 18 |
| Concurrent Res. | 21 | 6 | 14 | 5 | 35 | 11 |
| Resolutions | 15 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 25 | 16 |
| Special Con. Res. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
That means the House has passed 9.2% of the bills introduced and the Senate has passed 8.6%. These batting averages would get you dropped from a baseball team. But they have 45 or so days left.
And, in fairness, not all bills are equal. Some are simple and some are far more complex.
So where are all the bills? Bills get assigned to committees that have jurisdiction over the issues they cover. For instance, the Resources Committee deals with the programs and activities of the Departments of Fish and Game, Natural Resources, and Environmental Conservation. I'm told that since the legislature has been cut back from 120 days to 90 days, bills tend to be assigned to fewer committees.
Anyway, a bill gets sent to a committee, which discusses it, possibly amends it, then, if it votes yeah, sends it on to the next committee. If the bill has some sort of financial impact (and sometimes even if it is minimal) it has to go through the Finance Committee.
Actually, I skipped a bit. The whole procedure, step by step, is spelled out in a document linked on the Legislative Publications page and it's called Legislative Process in Alaska. The next steps come directly from there:
The Committee then returns the bill with its report to the Chief Clerk or Secretary.
The report is read under Standing Committee Reports as part of the Daily Order of Business. The bill is then transmitted to the next committee of referral by the Chief Clerk or Secretary. If the bill does not have another committee referral, it is delivered to the Rules Committee which may schedule the bill on the Daily Calendar for Second Reading. The Rules Committee may also hold hearings on the bill and may propose amendments or a committee substitute of its own.You can go to this page which lists each committee. Click on a committee and you'll see what bills are there. where each bill is at the moment.
Click on Finance Committee now and you find there are now 72 bills sitting in the House Finance Committee.
| PRIME | CURRENT | STATUS | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BILL | SHORT TITLE | SPONSOR(s) | STATUS | DATE |
| HB 4 | FALSE CALLER IDENTIFICATION | LYNN, GARDNER | (H) FIN | 02/04/09 |
| HB 7 | ROBERT E. BUSH VETERANS' MEMORIAL BRIDGE | CHENAULT | (H) FIN | 02/24/10 |
| HB 9 | CAPITAL PUNISHMENT | CHENAULT | (H) FIN | 04/10/09 |
| HB 13 | PROPERTY CRIMES | COGHILL | (H) FIN | 04/02/09 |
| HB 15 | BAN CELL PHONE USE BY MINORS WHEN DRIVING | GARDNER, TUCK | (H) FIN | 03/23/09 |
| HB 29 | ALASKA MINIMUM WAGE | OLSON | (H) FIN | 03/12/09 |
| HB 36 | INITIATIVES: CONTRIBUTIONS/ PROCEDURES | ** JOHANSEN, MILLETT | (H) FIN | 04/16/09 |
| HB 50 | LIMIT OVERTIME FOR REGISTERED NURSES | ** P.WILSON, GARA | (H) FIN | 04/15/09 |
| HB 52 | POST-TRIAL JUROR COUNSELING | KERTTULA | (H) FIN | 03/01/10 |
| HB 58 | EDUC LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM | ** THOMAS, P.WILSON | (H) FIN | 04/01/09 |
| HB 59 | PRE-ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PROGRAMS/PLANS | ** KAWASAKI, GARA | (H) FIN | 04/10/09 |
| HB 60 | BUDGET PLANNING & LONG-RANGE FISCAL PLAN | GRUENBERG, CISSNA | (H) FIN | 01/20/09 |
| HB 64 | GIFT CARDS | ** GATTO, GARDNER | (H) FIN | 02/11/09 |
| HB 69 | EARLY CHILDHOOD ED: RATING & HOME VISITS | ** TUCK, PETERSEN | (H) FIN | 04/10/09 |
| HB 70 | ALASKA GROWN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS | GATTO | (H) FIN | 04/03/09 |
| HB 73 | LICENSE PLATES | LYNN | (H) FIN | 03/25/09 |
| HB 76 | LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL & LB&A MEMBERSHIP | ** GRUENBERG, BUCH | (H) FIN | 02/05/10 |
| HB 79 | GAS ROYALTY & TAX FUND/PCE | RAMRAS | (H) FIN | 01/21/09 |
| HB 80 | JOINT ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE | DAHLSTROM | (H) FIN | 01/28/09 |
| HB 82 | BUDGET: CAPITAL, SUPP. & OTHER APPROPS | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 01/22/09 |
| HB 89 | VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION COMMITTEE | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 03/04/10 |
| HB 92 | DIVEST INVESTMENTS IN SUDAN | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 02/25/09 |
| HB 97 | STATE VETERANS' CEMETERY & FUND | GUTTENBERG | (H) FIN | 02/25/09 |
| HB 99 | DECEASED VETERAN DEATH CERTIFICATE/HONOR | STATE AFFAIRS | (H) FIN | 03/02/09 |
| HB 116 | IDITAROD REGISTRATION PLATES | NEUMAN | (H) FIN | 03/05/09 |
| HB 127 | ALASKA RAILROAD BUDGET | STOLTZE | (H) FIN | 03/18/09 |
| HB 132 | BICYCLE PROGRAM | SEATON | (H) FIN | 03/23/09 |
| HB 138 | CRUELTY TO ANIMALS | GATTO | (H) FIN | 03/01/10 |
| HB 147 | EDUCATION FUNDING FOR INSTRUCTION | EDUCATION | (H) FIN | 03/02/09 |
| HB 149 | CIVIL LEGAL SERVICES FUND | JUDICIARY | (H) FIN | 03/23/09 |
| HB 150 | POWER COST EQUALIZATION | AUSTERMAN | (H) FIN | 03/18/09 |
| HB 154 | SUPP./CAP. APPROPS: ECON. STIMULUS | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 02/25/09 |
| HB 155 | AUTHORIZE ECONOMIC STIMULUS PARTICIPATION | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 03/27/09 |
| HB 166 | SOUTHEAST ENERGY FUND | THOMAS | (H) FIN | 04/01/09 |
| HB 167 | TAX CREDIT FOR STATE TOURISM PROGRAM | COGHILL | (H) FIN | 04/08/09 |
| HB 168 | TRAUMA CARE CENTERS/FUND | COGHILL | (H) FIN | 02/17/10 |
| HB 169 | APPROP: TRAUMA CARE FUND | COGHILL | (H) FIN | 03/09/09 |
| HB 180 | SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION FUNDING | JOULE | (H) FIN | 03/12/09 |
| HB 190 | CHILDREN'S TRUST GRANT FOR ENDOWMENT | FAIRCLOUGH | (H) FIN | 04/15/09 |
| HB 193 | LEGISLATIVE ETHICS ACT | COGHILL | (H) FIN | 04/07/09 |
| HB 196 | ALTERNATIVE ENERGY REVOLVING LOAN FUND | ENERGY | (H) FIN | 04/01/09 |
| HB 204 | POSTSECONDARY MEDICAL EDUC. PROG. | DAHLSTROM | (H) FIN | 04/03/09 |
| HB 205 | PERMANENT FUND DIVIDEND FOR DECEASED | CRAWFORD | (H) FIN | 04/14/09 |
| HB 212 | UNEMPLOYMENT AMENDMENTS: FED STIMULUS | CRAWFORD | (H) FIN | 04/08/09 |
| HB 225 | STATE PROCUREMENT CODE | FAIRCLOUGH | (H) FIN | 04/14/09 |
| HB 228 | REPEAL CBR SUBACCOUNT | DOOGAN BY REQUEST | (H) FIN | 04/10/09 |
| HB 235 | PROF STUDENT EXCHANGE LOAN FORGIVENESS | MUNOZ | (H) FIN | 02/08/10 |
| HB 245 | LICENSING FOR OPTOMETRY | THOMAS | (H) FIN | 03/01/10 |
| HB 273 | MUNICIPAL GENERAL GRANT LAND | P.WILSON | (H) FIN | 02/26/10 |
| HB 283 | PURCHASE/CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL | CRAWFORD | (H) FIN | 03/04/10 |
| HB 291 | GUARANTEED REVENUE BONDS FOR VETERANS | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 02/23/10 |
| HB 292 | GRANTS TO DISASTER VICTIMS | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 02/19/10 |
| HB 294 | USE, REGULATION, AND OPERATION OF BOATS | NEUMAN | (H) FIN | 02/03/10 |
| HB 296 | ENERGY EFFICIENCY BONDS; LOANS; FUND | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 02/26/10 |
| HB 298 | SEX OFFENSES; OFFENDER REGIS.; SENTENCING | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 02/12/10 |
| HB 299 | CRIME LAB; LIFE SCIENCES BUILDING | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 01/19/10 |
| HB 300 | APPROP: OPERATING BUDGET/LOANS/FUNDS | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 01/19/10 |
| HB 301 | BUDGET: CAPITAL, SUPP. & OTHER APPROPS | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 01/19/10 |
| HB 302 | APPROP: MENTAL HEALTH BUDGET | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 01/19/10 |
| HB 310 | SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION DEBT REIMBURSEMENT | EDUCATION | (H) FIN | 02/17/10 |
| HB 312 | ADVISORY VOTE ON IN-STATE GAS PIPELINE | CHENAULT | (H) FIN | 02/05/10 |
| HB 314 | WORKERS' COMPENSATION | LABOR & COMMERCE | (H) FIN | 02/26/10 |
| HB 317 | EDUC. FUNDING: BASIC/SPEC NEEDS/TRANSPORT | EDUCATION | (H) FIN | 02/12/10 |
| HB 323 | INCREASING NUMBER OF SUPERIOR CT JUDGES | RLS BY REQUEST | (H) FIN | 03/01/10 |
| HB 325 | APPROP: DEFERRED MAINTENANCE/REPLACEMENT | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 02/03/10 |
| HB 326 | SUPPLEMENTAL/CAPITAL/OTHER APPROPRIATIONS | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 02/03/10 |
| HB 331 | YOUTH COURTS AND CRIMINAL FINES | MUNOZ | (H) FIN | 03/01/10 |
| HB 339 | AK HOUSING FIN CORP DIVIDEND | RLS BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR | (H) FIN | 02/10/10 |
| HB 342 | EXTEND BOARD OF REAL ESTATE APPRAISERS | T.WILSON | (H) FIN | 02/26/10 |
| HB 344 | SALMON PRODUCT DEVELOP. TAX CREDIT | THOMAS | (H) FIN | 02/23/10 |
| HB 346 | WORKERS' COMPENSATION ADVISORY BOARD | OLSON | (H) FIN | 02/26/10 |
| HB 356 | TRANSPORT. INFRASTRUCTURE FUND APPROP. | TRANSPORTATION | (H) FIN | 02/19/10 |
The House Rules Committee - the last stop before being voted on the House floor - has 21 bills.
Health and Human Services has 41.
Resources has 38.
State Affairs has 37.
Labor and Commerce has 35
Judiciary has 28.
Transportation has 25.
Education has 20.
Community and Regional Affairs has 19.
Energy has 15.
Fisheries has 15.
Military and Veterans Affairs has 1.
I've left out all the House Resolutions (HR) and House Joint Resolutions (HJR) and Senate Bills (SB). And note, that these can change every day, so the numbers will change.
The Legislators clearly spend a lot of time writing, pushing, and debating bills that never will become law. They seem to do this because they think it impresses voters and contributors. They also do this because they believe in the issues they are working on. Sometimes both motivations overlap, sometimes not. People have to ask more questions of their legislators.
I'm not completely sure what's still likely to pass. The Campaign Expenditure Disclosure bills - responding to the Citizens United Supreme Court case - appears to have bi-partisan support. This will require disclosure of the funders of independent issue ads. Even with this, everyone expects corporations and to a lesser extent labor unions, to target individual candidates who vote against their interests. Without any of these bills passing, they can do that without the public knowing who's paying for the ads.
It also looks like a lot of the remaining time will be spent on the gas pipeline and on a push by some lawmakers to lower oil and gas taxes.