A bipartisan announcement by Senate Leadership this week announced a series of rule changes expected to be adopted after the Senate convenes on January 2 that will make major changes in the way the Senate does business.

Incoming Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-Jefferson), joined Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi (R-Delaware) and Senate Democratic Leader Robert Mellow (D-Lackawanna) in making the announcement.

Among the changes are:

· Session times will be limited to between 8 a.m. and 11 p.m.;

· Amendments will be posted to the Internet before being offered on the Senate floor;

· The Senate will wait at least six hours before voting on an amended bill or a conference committee report;

· All roll call votes will be posted on the Internet as soon as possible after a vote, but always within 24 hours of a vote;

· Committee votes on bills will be posted on the Internet within 48 hours of the vote;

· The Senate's Legislative Journal – which includes the full text of all floor debates – will be posted on the Internet upon Senate approval of the Journal or within 45 days, whichever is earlier; and

· An updated fiscal note will be prepared if a bill is amended after consideration by the Senate Appropriations Committee, if the amendment has a fiscal impact.

"These reforms reflect a dramatic change in how the Senate operates," said Sen. Scarnati. "It's important that the public have confidence in our process and we believe that these new rules will help restore that confidence."

Sen. Pileggi said, "I've listened closely to my constituents and to the members of our caucus, and this reform package reflects what they've asked for. We're committed to making the Senate more open and visible, and we will also be looking at ways to make other parts of state government more open as well."

"These changes were very important to our caucus. We urged the incoming Republican leadership to make changes like this, and we're pleased that they worked with us to develop a set of rules that will make the Senate more transparent," said Sen. Mellow.

They said government reform – of all three branches – will be a session-long focus for them.

Said Sen. Scarnati. "These changes are important, but they are definitely not the last step."

Incoming House Majority Leader Keith McCall (D-Carbon) said this week the House will probably adopt the same rules as last session as a temporary measure, but take up to two months to draft a set of reforms.

Among other changes, Rep. McCall would like to see rules that limit what the House Rules Committee can do to amend legislation. In the past, the Rules Committee could totally change legislation, ignoring the wishes of standing committees in the House.

Like the Senate, also on the table in the House McCall said are proposals to provide 24 hours notice on amendments (although the House at least required amendments be posted in advance of session) and ending the practice of allowing sessions to go past midnight.

NewsClip: Senate, House Leaders Pledge Changes to Restore Public Confidence

12/29/2006