LEGISLATIVE TERMS AND DEFINITIONS
amend: the action a legislator takes to change or propose a change
in a bill, motion, report, or even another amendment by adding, omitting, or altering
language.
appeal: a resort to a higher court from a lower court.
bicameral: a legislature containing two houses.
biennium: the two-year period by which the state budget is set and
under which the legislative session operates. Money is appropriated for a two-year budget cycle
during the odd-numbered years.
bill: a proposal calling for a new law, a change in current law, the
repeal of current law, or a constitutional amendment. It consists of a title, enacting clause, and
body (text), which is examined and approved by the revisor of statutes.
bill, House advisory: a proposal for the initiation, termination,
alteration, or study of a law or program which may be drawn up informally in everyday terms.
Advisories are used only in the House.
bill, resolution: a proposal, introduced as a House or Senate file,
that urges another governmental body, to take or refrain from a certain action. A resolution can
also simply express the opinion, sentiments, or intent of a body, or both, if the resolution is a
joint one.
Calendar: a list of bills that have passed General Orders and are
awaiting their third reading, or final passage, in either the House or the Senate.
caucus: 1) a group of House members or senators who affiliate
with the same political party or faction such as the "DFL Caucus," the "IR Caucus," the
"Majority" or the "Minority Caucus''; 2) a meeting of such a group.
chief author: the main author, or sponsor, of a bill.
Committee of the Whole: all members of a legislative body acting
as a committee to debate and/or amend bills on General Orders.
companion bills: identical bills introduced in the House and
Senate.
concurrence: action in which one body approves or adopts a
proposal or action taken by the other house.
conference committee: a group of six or 10 members, with equal
numbers from the House and Senate, who are appointed to reach a compromise between the
House and Senate versions of a bill.
Consent Calendar: a list of non-controversial bills that are waiting
for their second reading. These bills bypass the Committee of the Whole and can receive final
passage in one day.
enacting clause: the constitutionally required portion of a bill
which formally expresses the intent that it become law: "Be it enacted by the Legislature of the
state of Minnesota . . ."
engrossment: the current text of a bill or resolution which includes
or incorporates all adopted amendments to the title and/or text.
enrollment: a bill that has been passed by both houses and has
been put in final form to be presented to the governor for his signature.
final passage: the vote taken on a bill after its third reading,
requiring a majority of all elected members of a legislative body for approval.
first reading: the reporting of a bill to the body at the time of its
introduction and referral to committee.
floor: after a bill passes through the committee process, it is sent to
the "floor" in either the House or Senate, meaning it is placed on any of the various bill lists
while awaiting debate by all members.
General Orders: a list of bills that have had second readings and
may be debated and/or amended by the body acting as the Committee of the Whole.
House advisory: (see bill, House
advisory)
House file: the number assigned to a bill before it is introduced. It
is listed at the top of the bill. HF2379, for example.
introduced (n., introduction): the formal presentation of a bill to a
body of the Legislature. The bill gets its first reading at this time and is then referred to a
committee.
journals: refers to either the Journal of the Senate or
the Journal of the House, which are the official records of the respective
bodies.
justice: a title given to judges, usually those who serve on the U.S.
or state supreme courts.
judge: a person who presides over a court.
legislative intent: what the Legislature really meant when it
approved a specific law.
legislative session: the term session is used loosely and has many
different meanings -- l) the two-year period during which the Legislature meets; 2)
regular session refers to the annual meetings of the Legislature; 3)
daily sessions refer to the times when the House and Senate meet in
their respective chambers.
line item veto: (see veto, line item)
lobbyist: a person acting individually or for an interest group who
tries to influence legislation.
majority: the party, either DFL or IR, that has the most members
elected in either the House or the Senate.
minority: the party, either DFL or IR, that has the fewest members
elected in either the House or Senate.
new language: the language in a bill that is added, or proposed to
be added, to existing state law. New language in bills is always underlined.
omnibus: a term used to describe large bills, such as tax,
education, and appropriations bills, that contain many different proposals.
page: a person employed by the House or Senate to run errands, to
assist committees, and to perform a variety of other legislative tasks.
pocket veto: (see veto, pocket)
recommendation: the action a committee takes on a bill. Although
in common usage a committee is said to pass a bill, technically, it recommends a bill to
pass.
repassage: a final vote on a bill previously passed in another form
to include amendments of the other chamber, a conference committee or amendments.
repeal: to eliminate a law, or section of a law, by an act of the
Legislature.
resolution: (see bill, resolution)
Rule 1.10: the House rule that allows the chairs of the House
Taxes or Appropriations committees to call up for immediate consideration any bill which has
gone through their committee and has had its second reading.
second reading: reporting of a bill to the body, following the
adoption of the committee report, that places it on General Orders or the Consent Calendar.
Senate file: the number assigned to a bill before it is introduced. It
is listed at the top of the bill. SF1354, for example.
session: 1) the biennial period during which the Legislature meets;
2) regular session, the annual meeting of the Legislature between the
first Tuesday after the first Monday in January and the first Monday after the third Saturday in
May; 3) special or extra session, a meeting
of the Legislature after the end of 120 legislative days in the biennium or after the date set by law
for adjournment; 4) daily session, a meeting of the House or Senate in
its chamber. (Note: The House and Senate meet only two days a week during the early part of the
session; every day after the session's midpoint.)
sine die: when the Legislature adjourns "without a date certain" in
the even-numbered years, the second year of the biennium.
Special Orders: a list of bills designated for priority consideration
by the Rules and Legislative Administration Committee, that may be debated and/or amended,
immediately given a third reading, and considered for final passage.
sponsor: a chief author or co-author of a bill.
stricken language: language that is proposed to be eliminated from
existing state law. Stricken language in bills is always crossed out.
third reading: the final reporting of a bill to the body before its
final passage. No amendments, except amendments to the title, may be offered after the third
reading unless unanimous consent is granted.
unicameral: a single body legislature.
veto: the constitutional power of the governor to refuse to sign a
bill, thus preventing it from becoming law unless it is passed again (with a two-thirds majority)
by both houses of the Legislature.
veto, line item: the power or action of the governor, rejecting a
portion or portions of an appropriations bill, while approving the rest.
veto, pocket: rejection of a bill by the governor after the
Legislature has adjourned sine die, preventing its reconsideration by the Legislature.
yield: to surrender the floor temporarily to another member for the
purpose of hearing a question or inquiry. "Madam Speaker, will Rep. Brown yield to a
question?"
Introduction
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