Delaware General Assembly Pre-Game Show: Tuesday, June 29, 2010

The last two days of session are not like the other days of session. How are they different? Let me count the ways:

1. While the House and Senate may still post an agenda (or agendas), dozens of other bills can and will be considered. This makes the last two days the most dangerous days when it comes to the disinfectant of sunshine.

2. During the last two days, the only rules are that there are no rules. Here’s how it works. A legislator will move to “waive any and all rules that interfere with the (introduction and) consideration of (fill in the bill #)”. It’s that simple.  Barring objection, and there rarely is one, that’s all you have to do. No committee hearing, no public notice, no listing on an agenda. Which is why the lobbyists are always pushing for bad bills right to the end. It’s the ideal time to sneak ’em past an exhausted, or, winking and nodding, General Assembly while the public is not even aware that the bills are being considered.

3. There are a couple of legit reasons to do this. With action fast and furious in both chambers, bills are sometimes amended in the chamber opposite the originating chamber. This means that the bill  has to return to its original chamber for a final vote on the amended version.  Assuming the money bills aren’t worked until June 30 (and they could in theory be considered today), then clearly at least one chamber also has to work the bill under suspension of rules. Uh, those are about the only legit reasons I can think of.

4. Once the posted agendas are completed, the chambers work what euphemistically are referred to as ‘Must-Lists’. These lists usually are put together by the respective majority whips in the House and Senate at the request of their members, one of the few real functions of the whips. The Senate puts together lists of legislation it wants the House to consider, and the House does the same.  Sometimes, a bill will pass one house under suspension of rules and then be put on a must-list and subsequently worked in the other house. No public notice whatsoever. These lists continue to be churned out until the dying moments of session. The new ‘working agendas’ are then passed out to members in manila folders. The press never gets advance notice of what is in them and rarely even knows until the bill is discussed on the floor. There is no way any reasonable person knows what’s going on, which is precisely the point.

Occasionally this process leads to a halt in action when one chamber or the other suspects that the other chamber is not working these lists in good faith.  The biggest culprit was former Speaker Terry Spence, who frequently turned June 30 into a self-indulgent vanity production. We’re talking Elvis impersonators and interminable farewells to retiring legislators. Usually two wasted hours every June 30. The Senate just loved that (not). Say what you will about Tom Sharp, but he was a big believer in ending session no later than 2 a. m. the morning of July 1. The House was often just getting started. This will likely not happen this year. To his credit, Speaker Gilligan has already given each retiring legislator their moment in the sun, one legislator per day. So, it should be a pretty smooth June 30/July 1.

Enough of what we don’t know. Time to take a look at what the General Assembly has chosen to share with us.

Last Thursday’s session was surprisingly devoid of action. This strikes me as a good thing, especially if, relatively speaking, the same holds true for today and tomorrow. The legislators have had two whole years to have legislation considered. Other than essentials like the Bradley package, the green energy bills, and the money bills, bills introduced late in session should be deferred unless a legitimate need has been demonstrated. I am also encouraged that Speaker Gilligan chose to refer dozens of bills to committees on Thursday. If he follows through and doesn’t permit willy-nilly suspension of rules requests, this could be the cleanest last day of session in two decades. Although…there are only two committee meetings scheduled for today, so I fear that we’ll see a rash of ‘suspension of rules’ requests tomorrow.

Let’s see what is posted for today. In terms of legislative comity, the Senate Agenda is an encouraging sign. Of the 22 listed pieces of legislation, 18 of them are House bills. Oh, and Colin Bonini finally gets to have his Magnolia charter change reconsidered. Kinda like Johnny LaRue (SCTV’s John Candy) getting his crane shot in “It’s a Wonderful Movie” from arguably the Best Christmas Special ever. There are no Senate committee meetings scheduled, which suggests that there are likely to be dozens of bills considered under suspension of rules. Not a good thing.

The House, per usual this time of year, is operating from several agendas. The House has also helpfully placed each bill’s status on the agenda. ‘Out of Committee’ means just what it says, and bills enumerated as such would not require a suspension of rules to be considered. ‘Committee’ means that the bill is still in committee. Either it would have to be released from committee, or would have to be considered under suspension of rules. The House Health & Human Development Committee meets today to consider the Bradley package.

A blatant example of special interest legislation should be voted down by the House. Just read the synopsis of HB 477(Viola). Somebody, and just one somebody, wants this. For that reason alone, this bill deserves defeat.

Two of the three green energy bills are on today’s agenda. SS1/SB119 and SB 267 are scheduled to be considered today. I have also been assured by a highly-reliable source that SB 266, which was laid on the Speaker’s table after Rethug game-playing last week, will also be considered today. Bills laid on the table can be removed and then considered at any time by floor manager’s request.

House Agendas IV and V suggest that legislative comity, at least between houses if not within them, is holding for the time-being. Both agendas feature nothing but Senate bills.

All signs point to a relatively quiet end to this session of the General Assembly. The only real wild card remains what games Bagman Cathcart and Monsignor Lavelle will play. If they choose to legislate rather than grandstand, it will be a short night. It will also be fun to see if Colin Bonini does his annual painful oration on why he’s voting ‘no’ on the budget. Plus, there’s always the chance that a legislator will cry.

Speaking of crying, a big shout out to Delaware Dem for writing this post last Thursday. He did a really good job. (Insert Richard Nixon voice): Some would say, ‘Too good’.