As the clock continued to count down until the end of the legislative session Friday, the House met on Tuesday for a session extending most of the day to pass measures from the Senate.
The House examined more than 40 bills from the Senate, as sponsors took questions and guided the legislation through the amendatory process -- setting the stage for what should be a busy session Wednesday.
In his role as chairman of the House Rules and Calendar Committee, Rep. Gary Aubuchon, R-Cape Coral, informed members early on Tuesday morning what they were facing.
There are 41 Senate bills on special order, noted Aubuchon in a memo sent out to all representatives on Tuesday morning. I anticipate that we will not roll any of the bills to third reading and vote on them today.At the end of the day, I will make a single, omnibus motion to lay the House companion bills on the table.
We are carefully reviewing returning messages from the Senate to determine whether any of the bills require amendments, added Aubuchon. Returning messages that do require amendments will be taken up as a priority.
The representatives went through the various measures with Rep. Jim Waldman, D-Coconut Creek, often asking Republican sponsors about the differences between the Senate versions of the bills and the ones initially backed in the House.
The House examined a number of education bills, including a proposal backed by Rep. Kelli Stargel, R-Lakeland, to expand high-performing charter schools and would give them the ability to apply for charters for up to as many as 15 years. The House also rolled over other bills dealing with education, including one on student dress codes and one allowing a number of community colleges across the state to change their names now that they are offering bachelor's degrees.
The House also rolled over a concealed weapons proposal which would decriminalize accidental weapon exposures. While he baked the measure, the sponsor in the House, Rep. Chris Dorworth, R-Heathrow, said it was a watered down version of his initial bill which would have put Florida in line with more than 40 states that have open carry laws.
As the session went on, House members continued to roll over legislation including measures against bestiality, restrictions on the geographic locations of town meetings and increasing punishments against politicians who lie about their military service.
While most of the bills from the Senate were handled with little in the way of questions and should sail through on third reading on Wednesday, Rep. John Wood, R-Hanes City, took questions and amendments for almost two hours on a proposal on insurance reforms. With substantial differences between the Senate and the House versions, including over sinkhole coverage, the fate of the legislation remains uncertain.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
