The sixth week of the 2020 legislative session brings us to the first major legislative deadline, the last day for legislators to request bills written by legislative services. The next major deadline is Monday, February 17, which is the last day a bill may be submitted for consideration for this session.

 

The process for a bill to be considered by the legislature begins with an idea. Sometimes these ideas come from state or national groups, but often the ideas come from citizens who have contacted a legislator.

 

The legislator takes that idea and begins a discussion with the House Legislative Services which consist of attorneys who work for the Mississippi House of Representatives. Their job is to research the legal aspects of the idea and provide the legislator with a report of their findings. It then becomes the responsibility of the legislator to determine if he wants to have the attorney write the bill.

 

Once the bill is written the legislator begins discussing his bill with other legislators and gaining support. Some ideas become very popular and other legislators will “sign on” to the bill. Once others have “signed on” they become co-authors or sometime referred to as co-sponsors of the bill.

 

Before the deadline, the original author will “drop” the bill. This phrase comes from the actual process of putting a paper copy of the bill in a box located on the floor of the House chamber. The bill is actually dropped into the box. At this point the bill becomes the property of the House and will begin the process of being assigned to a committee for review and hopefully voted on by the entire body of the House of Representatives.

 

What ideas do you have for legislation that would help our state?

 

 

Mississippi Seafood Marketing Law of 2020, House Bill 551