Senate committee adopts amendment to HB 248 letting some nonprofits opt out of reporting requirements

The Senate convened and took up HB 248, a housekeeping bill introduced by Representative Faulner, and adopted an amendment that would allow certain nonprofits to opt out of specified reporting requirements.

The chair opened consideration of HB 248, noting it addressed complaints about how frequently and how voluminous certain filings had become. A lawmaker speaking for the sponsor said the bill aims to prevent last-minute filings and described plans for the relevant organization to reorganize its annual meeting timing so filings can be pre-filed rather than concentrated in mid-February.

A lawmaker offered an amendment, identified in the record as '2J5 RB II-1,' that would allow qualifying nonprofits to "affirmatively opt out of the reporting provisions." The proponent said nonprofit law experts generally favor giving organizations the choice; "it should show 2J5 RB II-1 in the upper leftand corner," the lawmaker said while pointing to the printed amendment.

A committee member asked which chapter or section the change would affect. The lawmaker clarified that the amendment targets the nonprofit section of the chapter and that the opt-out would apply only to nonprofits.

The committee registered a motion and second on the amendment and called the roll. The clerk used the previous roll for the vote. The transcript records that the panel returned to the bill "as amended" after the roll call; the transcript does not provide an individual vote tally in the record provided.

After the action on the amendment, the chair returned the agenda to HB 248 in its amended form, offered brief closing remarks thanking staff (including a person referred to as Sam), and adjourned the meeting.

What happens next: The transcript does not record a final floor vote on HB 248 in this session; it records only the committee's adoption of the amendment and the committee's adjournment. Any further procedural steps or final passage are not recorded in the provided transcript.