I
don’t know about you, but I’ll be celebrating (or commiserating) my 20 year
high school reunion next year. That’s seems like light years ago, as I vaguely
recall the lessons of my civics teacher—Coach Rousell. In high school, I didn’t
much care for civics or politics, but in everyday life, it’s really important
to know how to advocate on your behalf or on behalf of your career, business,
community and even family.
Recently,
the 2013 Louisiana Legislature kicked off and top of mind is the $1.3 billion
budget deficit and which programs will be on the chopping block. Some bills
introduced, monitored by the Louisiana Restaurant Association (LRA), have
resulted in phone calls to the office, some of which were members requesting a
refresher course on the legislative process.
As
someone who spends much of my time during session tracking bills through the
process, here’s my overly simplified version. You may refer to the old School
House Rock video if you seek a little entertainment while learning.
A
bill is filed by a legislator and then assigned to a committee, determined by
its respective topic relative to a specific committee. There are 17 standing
senate committees and 16 standing house committees.
The
full committee decides whether to "kill" the bill or send it to the
floor of its chamber for approval. For example, a senate bill will go through
the senate committee and then to the floor and if it passes favorably, it move
to the corresponding house committee, then to the house floor for a full vote.
The
last step before becoming law is a signature by the Governor.
This
year, the session is two weeks shorter than 2012’s Session and runs through
June 6.
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