Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 18, 1991 TAG: 9102180248
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-5 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
But not everyone agrees on what should be done to more evenly distribute the work and open the system to more public participation.
The General Assembly conducts 60-day sessions in even years, when a budget for the next two years is drafted. Odd-year sessions are supposed to be 30 days but are routinely extended a couple of weeks. This year's session, scheduled to end Saturday, would be 46 days.
Del. Clinton Miller, R-Shenandoah, said one of the problems with short sessions is the way the budget is handled. The assembly has strayed from its original practice of simply fine-tuning the budget in odd years, he said.
"We do a lot more budgeting than originally contemplated in short sessions," Miller said. "We've gone to almost annual budgeting."
Never has that been more evident than this year, as legislators and Gov. Douglas Wilder grapple with ways to plug a $2.2 billion hole in the 1990-92 budget.
As if the money woes were not enough, the General Assembly began the 1991 session with, ironically, 1,991 bills and resolutions to consider. Many legislators have complained that the compressed time frame has made it almost impossible to thoroughly consider all measures. By the end of the day last Thursday, only 510 measures had cleared both chambers.
"It's madness," said Miller, who in one recent morning had to appear either as a member or a bill sponsor at 11 committee or subcommittee meetings.
One of the committees on which Miller serves is the House Courts of Justice Committee, an all-lawyer panel that every year handles more bills than any other committee.
"There's no way Courts has time to give everything full consideration," Miller said.
Del. Hardaway Marks, D-Hopewell and chairman of the committee, said it could be worse. He said the panel has not handled as many bills this year as in some previous years.
"This year, everybody realized we have money problems," Marks said.
Nevertheless, Marks' committee had so many bills still on the docket Friday that it had to meet before and after the noon floor session in an effort to meet Monday's deadline for committee action.
Miller believes his proposed constitutional amendment allowing the General Assembly to take a midsession recess would break up the legislative logjam and allow for more thoughtful deliberation of bills.
"If recess periods are approved, we could better utilize our time and cut down on legislative days," Miller said. "Committees could have their public hearings on bills while we're not in session. We have to be able to have committee meetings where we don't take away from other committee meetings."
Miller's proposal, as approved by the House, would allow recesses of up to 21 days. The Senate scaled it back to 10 days.
The Republican delegate's proposal has received support from some unlikely sources, including Senate Majority Leader Hunter Andrews, D-Hampton.
"We have not done the proper credit to legislation," Andrews said in endorsing Miller's idea.
Andrews said Virginia has grown to become the 12th largest state. That means the state's problems are more complex and demand more careful study, he said.
Sen. Dudley Emick, D-Fincastle, agreed. "The people expect us to do a little bit better than what we're doing," he said.
However, not everyone likes Miller's idea. Sen. Joseph Gartlan, D-Fairfax, scoffed at the idea that legislators would study the budget and otherwise make productive use of their time during recesses. He recalled that in elementary school, children are given recesses so they can play. He suggested legislators would do the same.
Sen. Richard Saslaw, D-Fairfax, said the move would be the first step toward a full-time legislature.
On the contrary, Miller said his proposal would be "a defense against a full-time legislature." He said the number of legislative days would still be limited, but lawmakers would have more time to talk to constituents and do their homework on legislation.
Miller's idea isn't the only one being mentioned. Sen. Daniel Bird, D-Wythe, said he expects the assembly eventually will go to annual 60-day sessions, or perhaps to 75-day sessions in budget years.
Democratic Sen. Madison Marye had his own proposal. The Montgomery County farmer said the House and Senate Courts of Justice Committees' bills should be the last matters taken up. Everyone else could go home, and the courts committees "could stay here and debate all those issues that lawyers so dearly love to debate," Marye said.
Keywords:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
by CNB