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Tag Archives: vetting
New data show how little time the Legislature spends per bill
The median bill enacted in 2018 received a total of only seven minutes of House and Senate floor debate before passage. Today the Utah Legislature concludes the fifth week of its seven-week General Session. The pace is about to pick … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged capacity, floor time, legislative life, legislature, vetting
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New data show how little time the Legislature spends per bill
The 2017 Utah Legislature passed a record number of bills but slightly improved vetting time
We’re not back to the good old days of 2007-2008, but legislators definitely did better this year at getting their bills out earlier Back in January, I heard a lot of chatter that this would be one of the busiest sessions ever. … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged legislative life, legislature, vetting
Comments Off on The 2017 Utah Legislature passed a record number of bills but slightly improved vetting time
The 2017 Utah Legislature passed a record number of bills but slightly improved vetting time
The 2016 Legislature: Slowing down while speeding up
Legislators introduced 177 bills in the session’s final three weeks. Despite being limited to only 45 lawmaking days, Utah’s Legislature sure passes a lot of bills–2 to 3 times as many bills per year as Congress. After last year’s record … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged legislative life, legislature, vetting
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The 2016 Legislature: Slowing down while speeding up
The 2015 Legislature passed 528 bills in 45 days
Though there were 87 more bills introduced in 2015 than 2008 overall, there were 84 fewer introductions within the first two weeks. By the time the Utah Legislature concluded its seven-week General Session last Thursday, legislators had passed 528 bills (including resolutions). I’ve … Continue reading
The closest votes in the 2014 Utah Legislature
Close votes are rare in the Utah Legislature. Instead, the typical bill passes with over 90% of legislators voting the same way. There are exceptions to every rule, of course. Here, I’ve listed the 20 closest votes in each chamber … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged consensus, legislature, measurement, partisanship, roll call votes, vetting
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The closest votes in the 2014 Utah Legislature
The 2014 Legislature: Slow out of the gate, frantic in the stretch
Clearly, something caused the Legislature to fall behind in its bill processing this year. Utah legislators introduced 786 bills and resolutions in the 2014 session—fewer than the 800 we saw in 2009, but still higher than usual. However, a procedural … Continue reading
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Tagged legislative life, legislature, vetting
Comments Off on The 2014 Legislature: Slow out of the gate, frantic in the stretch
The 2014 Legislature: Slow out of the gate, frantic in the stretch
Did changing the calendar create a major crunch day in the Legislature?
Legislators can either rush bills through the process with minimal debate in order to clear the backlog, or they can take a more methodical pace even if it means some good bills don’t get to come to a vote before … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged legislature, vetting
Comments Off on Did changing the calendar create a major crunch day in the Legislature?
Did changing the calendar create a major crunch day in the Legislature?
How quickly were bills passed in 2013?
Something changed around 2009 or 2010 that led legislators to introduce their bills later and, as a result, process them more quickly. In 2013, the Utah Legislature passed more bills than it’s passed since I started keeping track (in 2007). … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged legislative life, legislature, measurement, sponsorship, vetting
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How quickly were bills passed in 2013?
The closest votes in the 2013 Legislature
Most votes in the Utah Legislature pass with an overwhelming bipartisan majority. It has long been tradition that floor votes in the Utah Legislature pass with overwhelming majorities taking the same side. Democrats and Republicans alike tend to get behind … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged consensus, legislature, measurement, partisanship, roll call votes, vetting
Comments Off on The closest votes in the 2013 Legislature
The closest votes in the 2013 Legislature
Context for Sen. Osmond’s proposed rules changes
Bills were introduced later and passed faster in 2012. It seems Sen. Osmond wants to reverse this trend. The news reports that Sen. Aaron Osmond wants to change the legislature’s rules to ban so-called “boxcar” bills, thereby increasing transparency in … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged grama, legislature, vetting
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Context for Sen. Osmond’s proposed rules changes