…And all the roadblocks on the way!

How a Bill Becomes Law

Bills typically come from one of four sources:◦ Constituents ◦ Elected officials themselves◦ Interest groups◦ State agencies

The legislative process is a multi-faceted process with lots of potential stumbling blocks.

How a Bill Becomes Law

Steps in the process:◦ Drafting and introduction:

Revisor’s Office House Research and Senate Counsel Role of the Member

◦ Committee hearing: Bills must navigate every committee in which

they may have an impact (tuition work group would have required four committee stops).

Bill Is open to amendment in this process.

How a Bill Becomes Law

Steps in the process (cont):◦ Floor debate and vote:

Both chambers must pass a version off the floor.

Bill is open to amendment in this process.◦ Conference committee:

If there are differences between the two versions, representatives of the House and Senate meet to work them out.

Bills must be IDENTICAL in order to be sent to the Governor.

How a Bill Becomes Law

Back the floors:◦ Once a conference committee reaches

agreement the final version must be re-passed by both chambers.

◦ A “conference report” is not amendable. Off to the Governor:

◦ Signature◦ Veto

How a Bill Becomes Law

How a Bill Becomes Law

What Bill the bill didn’t teach us…

The legislative process can often be full of roadblocks.

In some situations, one member can prevent a bill from moving through the process. For example:◦ Committee chairs◦ Leadership◦ Authors

Sometimes, it’s not that simple!

Committee deadlines can cause bills to “die.” At the start of each session joint deadlines between

the House and Senate are agreed upon. Those deadlines are:◦ 1st policy deadline: The date at which a bill must be

heard in its first policy committee in one of the two chambers

◦ 2nd policy deadline: The date at which a bill must be passed through all its policy committee stops

◦ 3rd deadline: Bills must be through all policy and finance committees

There are exceptions to these deadlines:◦ Rules Committee◦ Tax and Capital investment bills

Sometimes, it’s not that simple!

There are alternative ways to pass bills.

These alternate ways can work, but they can also be very tricky. They include:◦ Offered as a committee amendment◦ Offered as a floor amendment ◦ Included in an omnibus bill

MSCSA’s legislative agenda was, in part, moved in some of these alternative ways due to the roadblocks discussed earlier.

Other ways to pass your bills?

PSEO Advertising legislation:◦ Received a hearing in the House E-12 Policy

Committee and passed on a 10-1 vote.◦ Chair of House Higher Education requested

the bill to his committee and refused to hear.

◦ Bill was heard in the Senate E-12 Policy Committee and was tabled.

◦ Nearly identical language was later added to the policy omnibus bill on the House floor.

◦ Language survived conference committee and was included in the conference report.

Real Life Example

PSEO Cont:◦ The conference report was awaiting action

on the Senate floor. ◦ Senate Majority Leader objected to this

provision and initially refused to bring the report up for a vote.

◦ Language repealing our change was included in a different bill.

Real Life Example

Be able to present on relevant research topics at regional meetings

Rep & Alt should be working together and maintain constant contact

Communicate with GC Rep and campuses in region regularly to gather feedback on legislative and policy issues facing the region or the state.

Attend all regional meetings and conferences to represent your region and report back on initiatives you and your region are taking on.

Stay in contact with Kerrie, ask questions, and participate in discussion/debate. Feel free to contact at any time.

HAVE FUN!

Expectations

Serve on the MSCSA Platform Committee representing their region(s)

Conduct independent research on important legislative/policy issues in higher ed.

Assist the MSCSA in organizing their regions to attend Advocacy events.

Set the legislative agenda for the year and make recommendations for the Platform document.

Ask questions and engage in the issues!

Duties

Please pair up for this project! Work together to answer as many of

the questions as possible! With the exception of questions 9 and

10, answers can be found on legislative websites or sites linked to these pages:◦ www.house.mn◦ www.senate.mn

Let’s do some research!