House suspends rules to read 37 bills by number; H.554 sent to Ways and Means

The House opened by suspending its rules to allow the clerk to introduce bills by number only. "Madam Speaker, I make a motion to suspend rules in order to introduce bills by number only," a member moved; the body approved the motion by voice vote.

The suspension cleared the way for the clerk and readers to recite 37 bill numbers and their committee referrals, including bills sent to Environment and Energy, Education, Transportation, Judiciary, Human Services, Ways and Means, Agriculture, and Commerce and Economic Development. The readings were procedural; most listings included only the bill number and the primary committee referral.

One item on the notice calendar drew a substantive referral: House Bill 554, "an act relating to the approval of the adoption of the charter of the Town of South Hurrell," was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means because it "materially affect[s] the revenue of a municipality." The referral signals that committee staff will review the proposal for revenue impacts before further floor action.

There were no roll-call tallies recorded during the bill introductions; voice votes were used for the procedural suspension and clerical readings. The House proceeded to other calendar business after the introductions.