Moving into Conference…
So the bill you’re interested in has survived both the House and the Senate… only trouble is, they’ve each passed different versions of the bill! What next?
Your bill is most likely destined for conference committee — where assigned Representatives and Senators will attempt to negotiate a final version of the bill. Numerous other bills in this situation are also being worked on in conference, and the final versions of the bills need to be agreed upon and produced by the Final Decking deadline. It’s a very different phase of the proceedings than the hearing process, and can be a bit of a challenge to follow!
Here are a couple of helpful resources:
- Find a quick overview of conference.
- The 2015 Joint House-Senate Conference Procedures have been posted on the website (find them front and center in the “Recent Updates” box on the Legislature’s homepage, or under the “Legislative Information” bar to the right).
As always, call or email the Public Access Room (PAR) if you have questions.