An informational and educational resource for the Colorado General Assembly by the Office of Legislative Legal Services.
by Julie Pelegrin
The opening day of the First Regular Session of the Sixty-ninth General Assembly is just around the corner: Wednesday, January 9, 2013. For many legislators and legislative watchers, the hoopla and falderal will be old hat, but for those who are new to the process, here’s a quick overview of what to expect and some explanation of why they do what they do. (more…)
by Julie Pelegrin
With the 2013 legislative session starting in less than two weeks, we thought it might be time to review some of the ins and outs of bill sponsoring with a few frequently asked bill-sponsor questions: (more…)
by Patti Dahlberg
According to Joint Rule 24(b)(1)(A), every legislator is allowed five bill requests each session. These five bill requests are in addition to any appropriation, committee-approved, or sunset bills that a legislator may choose to carry — seems pretty simple doesn’t it?
Not so fast. In order to keep these five bill requests, a legislator’s bill requests must also meet specific bill introduction deadlines.
by Patti Dahlberg
First, let me just say “Congratulations and welcome aboard!” You probably thought you’d have at least two months between your election and easing into being a General Assembly member. After all, the 2013 General Assembly doesn’t convene until Wednesday, January 9, 2013. But, hold on to your hats — the Legislative Rules concerning bill deadlines require that the bulk of bill drafting be accomplished before the first day of the legislative session. (more…)
by Patti Dahlberg
Fall is officially here, which means that the first bill request deadline is just around the corner! True — December 1 is still a few weeks away, but somehow each year time seems to slip away until this first bill request deadline rudely rears its head amidst holidays and about a million other things that need to be taken care of before session starts. (more…)
by Nate Carr
You’re feeling great! The bill you’ve been working on for months has just cleared third reading on the floor. A few amendments were added before it passed, but that’s okay. Leadership dismisses everyone for the day, and you leave the chambers. The next morning you return to your desk to find a letter from the Publications Coordinator and the Revisor of Statutes titled “Revisor’s Comment”. Both work in the Office of Legislative Legal Services. You open the letter to discover that they are alerting you to a conflict that your bill has with one or more other bills circulating through the process. You may experience a touch of anxiety, but don’t worry, the OLLS staff is ready and willing to work with you to resolve the conflict. (more…)
by: Matt Dawkins and Patti Dahlberg
Tributes may be a useful tool that a legislator can use in reaching out to constituents. Colorado legislators are not limited in the number of tributes they may request to recognize or commend an individual or organization. The content of a tribute is unique to each request and can be designed to fit the needs of each request — it can be short and created fairly quickly or it can be longer and contain specific information provided by the legislator. (more…)
After you approve your bill draft for introduction, the OLLS will deliver it to the front desk of the House or the Senate or the OLLS will deliver it to the sergeants who will give the bill to you. Please do not contact the OLLS to add sponsors after your bill has been delivered to the front desk or to you.
Sponsors
If the sergeants deliver the bill to you, you will receive a copy of your bill stapled to a heavier sheet of green paper (if you’re a representative) or buff paper (if you’re a senator). This is called a “bill back”. Also attached to the bill back are a sheet of paper with the name of each senator and one with the name of each representative. If you would like a representative or senator to sign on as a sponsor for your bill, ask that person to sign the attached paper next to his or her name. When you turn the bill back in to the front desk, the staff will include each person who has signed as a sponsor of your bill before the bill is sent to the printer, and the sponsor names will appear on the introduced version of the bill. Neither the House nor the Senate can add sponsors after your bill is sent to the printer.
Prime sponsors
If you want to designate your second-house prime sponsor after your bill is delivered upstairs, you must sign a form that formally designates the second-house prime sponsor before your bill passes on third reading. The form is available from the Chief Clerk of the House, for representatives, or the Secretary of the Senate, for senators. If you sign the form and turn it in to the front desk with your bill back or before your bill goes to the printer, the front desk staff will add the second-house prime sponsor immediately, and his or her name will appear on the introduced version of your bill.
After your bill is printed and introduced, anyone who wants to sign on as a co-sponsor will have an opportunity to do so on third reading.
by Patti Dahlberg
Joint Rules 23 and 24 limit the number of bill requests a legislator may submit as well as the deadlines for moving bills through the legislative process. The expectation is that all bill requests and bills will adhere to these limitations and deadlines. However, on occasion, a legislator may need to seek delayed bill authorization for a bill request or a bill that will not meet these limitations or deadlines. (more…)
Your first three bill requests, which are intended to meet the early bill introduction deadlines, had to be submitted by December 1, 2011. If you submitted only three bill requests at that time, you can request two more bills. You must submit these last two bill requests to the OLLS on or before Monday, January 16, 2012, unless the General Assembly decides that it will not meet on that day, since it is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. If that happens, the deadline for submitting your last two bill requests to the OLLS is Tuesday, January 17, 2012.
If you submitted four bill requests by December 1, you can submit one more request, but if you submitted five bill requests by December 1, you cannot submit any more bill requests unless you withdraw, or kill, one of the bill requests you already have in. If you have already requested more than three bills, and you have three bills that will meet the early introduction deadlines, you can replace up to two bill requests with new bill requests so long as you submit them to the OLLS on or before Monday, January 16, 2012, or Tuesday, January 17, 2012, if the General Assembly does not meet on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.