News-Record.com

Update: For all your rule junkies:

• Click here to link to the bill that contains the new rules.
  
• Click here to link to read Speaker Hackney's explanation of the new rules.

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The honorables in the House are busy rolling out new rules to run the chamber. The interest here is that the rules of the past few sessions concentrated hands in the power of a few. That power was something people were willing to pay for and cheat to keep and we ended up with the scandal surrounding House Speaker Jim Black.

Features:

• Eliminating floaters. These were members who could sit on any committee and turn the tide of legislation.
• No more special provisions in the budget. These were substantive changes to state law that had nothing to do with spending or taxing. (Eg: the change to insurance law that favored chiropractors in 2005.)
• The provision that tightly draws the title of legislation "tightly" and makes bills nearly impossible to amend beyond a certain point on the House floor remains.

I should note that we haven’t actually seen the rule package yet, but they will be vetted at a Rules Committee meeting this Thursday afternoon after session.

Quotes from the 10:30 a.m. presser that hashed over all this:

Speaker Hackney: “Don’t watch what I say, watch what I do,” promising to run the House fairly.

Rep. John Blust: “These are good changes, but basically the Speaker can still call the shots,” worrying that the Democratic majority can still ramrod bills through when it suits them.