By Brandon Chrisman
Speaker Pro Tem of the House
Earlier this month, the Legislative Council planned a trip down to the Capitol. The goal of this trip was to both see how the real legislature does business, and also to see in what ways TISL differs from the actual legislature.
Lt. Governor Sloan, House Speaker Jessica Watts, Executive Director Jeff Wilson and I arrived at the Capitol around 8 AM. We ventured into Legislative Plaza and decided to sit in on a committee before heading to session. Viewing the committee was an interesting experience.
First off, the committee was the House Calendar and Rules Committee, which sets the calendar for session. As you know, TISL doesn’t have a Calendar and Rules Committee. The reason why is that, first off, TISL doesn’t have the time to add another step between committees and session, and secondly, the Calendar and Rules committee is largely procedural. In watching the committee, there was hardly any debate. Mainly just motions, seconds, and adoption.
From the Calendar and Rules Committee, we made our way to the Capitol. On the way there, we were introduced to TISL Alumni Russell Humphrey, current Chief Clerk of the Senate, and Mike Faulk, current Senator.
To begin with, we sat in the Senate gallery and watched how they ran things (We even got recognized and applauded by the Senate!!). The Senate was very efficient. The calendar flowed as planned and there was no confusion. It was very impressive to see how effortlessly they moved forward.
From the Senate, we went to the House. The House was much the same as far as efficiency. The House was home to more debate than the Senate, but that comes with having around 60 more members than the Senate. In watching both proceedings, we recognized how under control and organized session was.
After spending the morning on the hill, we went to lunch and discussed what we took away from the day. There was a consensus on the aspects of efficiency, organization and lack of confusion. The three of us were in agreement that these are places we can improve TISL.
As Officers in our respective houses, we can improve on these by being clear. The more clarity we provide, the more efficiently our houses will run. We all thought that that would help make everything run smoother. We have to make sure that every member in our chamber knows what’s going on, that responsibility falls on us.
Any time a motion was made at the Capitol, Speaker Harwell and Lt. Governor Ramsey repeated it. They always said what just happened, what they were now on, and then what was next. For example, “Motion for previous question fails. Now back on debate for Senate bill 1023. Senator Johnson you’re recognized.”
Executive Director Wilson mentioned to us that this way was the easiest way to clear up confusion and make sure everyone is aware of what’s happening.
So to conclude, the trip that we took to the Capitol earlier this month gave us valuable insight into how the actual Legislature conducts business and how we can apply that to TISL. The three of us that went took away information that will surely help us be better leaders for TISL and for you.
