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Legislative Agenda In Works for 1999-2000 PDF Print E-mail
NOVEMBER 1998 - Lobbying Team Ready For New Session - Just as the 1997-98 Legislative session winds down, our Association’s legislative team is gearing up for the new session set to convene in January.

Any legislation that the Association wishes to file for the 1999-2000 Legislative session must be submitted to the House or Senate Clerk no later than December 2, 1998. Along with drafting the prospective legislation, Association lobbyists will be meeting with legislative leaders to seek sponsorship of the bills.

“Every bill we file needs to be properly drafted and have a legislator as its sponsor,” said Association Legislative Chairman Bill Hill. “We will be meeting with various Reps. and Senators throughout November to gather sponsors. Sponsorship is very important to the future success of the bill.”

Drafting Process Underway

The drafting of the Association’s legislative package is a process that evolves over the course of many months. Association officers, who have gathered input from members, sit down with General Counsel Bill Rehrey, who drafts the legislation.

Under rules that were adopted by the legislature in 1995, the session runs concurrent with the legislators’ two-year term of office. This has proved to be a tremendous benefit to the Association over the past two sessions. Several key pieces of legislation have been approved during the second year of the session.

Historically, the Association is not known for the volume of bills it submits for legislative consideration. During a typical session, the Association files no more than a dozen bills. Frivolous bills or those affecting an individual member are generally not filed as part of the package.

“Some members get very angry because we will not file a bill that affects just them. Others feel we should become involved in bills supporting social causes,” added Hill. “We have to look out for the membership as a whole. No one member is any more important than another, regardless of what job they held.

“I think our track record over the years speaks for itself. It destroys our credibility if we file frivolous bills that have no chance of ever passing. Sure we want the best for our members, but we have to look at things realistically.”
 
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