The start of a new year is a time to resolve to make improvements in the upcoming year. One question I heard quite a bit from constituents across the district last year was how they could stay up to date on the many pieces of legislation that were up for committee hearings or a vote each week.
In order to help make the information more accessible, each week that there is session I am going to post to my website a synopsis of the work each House committee will do for the week. This will include the time and location for the meeting as well as any bills or presentations the committee will hear. Each agenda item will include the bill number, the sponsor, and a brief summary of the legislation. If you would like to read in greater detail about any of these bills, you can read them in their full text at www.legislature.mi.gov.
Please also note that you and your neighbors are welcome to observe any committee meeting or legislative session. Most House committee meetings are in the House Office Building (124 N. Capitol Ave., Lansing) but some convene in the Capitol across the street.
As your elected officials, it is our job to conduct legislative business with efficiency and transparency. I hope you find these posts helpful and please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any additional questions or concerns.
Week of Jan. 13, 2014: Committee Meetings
Regulatory Reform
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 14
Time: 9 a.m.
Location: Room 521, House Office Building, Lansing
Agenda:
HB 4582 – (Rep. Foster) – Occupations; residential builders; prelicensure education requirements for residential builders and contractors; revise.
SB 641 – (Sen. Kowall) – Occupations; real estate; prelicensure and continuing education for realtors; revise, and authorize relicensure of certain former licensees.
Oversight
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 14
Time: 2:30 p.m.*
Location: Room 326, House Office Building, Lansing
Agenda:
HB 5193 – (Rep. McMillin) – Civil rights; open meetings; closed-door sessions for trial or settlement strategy; allow only if matter being discussed is currently being litigated.
HB 5194 – (Rep. McMillin) – Civil rights; open meetings; accountability for penalties for violating open meetings act; limit defenses.
Appropriations
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15
Time: 9 a.m.
Location: Room 352, State Capitol Building, Lansing
Agenda:
The House Fiscal Agency will deliver a presentation on the Revenue Estimating Conference. The REC took place on Friday, Jan. 10, to assess how much revenue the state of Michigan will have. The consensus among the state’s economists is that Michigan will have a $971 million surplus.
Commerce
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15
Time: 10:30 a.m.
Location: Room 519, House Office Building, Lansing
Agenda:
HB 5131 – (Rep. Santana) – Economic development; brownfield redevelopment authority; member of board; allow to be appointed to serve in his or her capacity as elected official, and establish when member’s service as elected official ends, the term on the board ends.
HB 5132 – (Rep. Santana) – Economic development; economic development corporations; member of board; allow to be appointed to serve in his or her capacity as elected official, and establish that when member’s service as elected official ends, the term on the board ends.
HB 4487 – (Rep. Oakes) – Economic development; downtown development authorities; use of certain revenues for agriculture industry; allow.
Criminal Justice
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15
Time: 10:30 a.m.
Location: Room 327, House Office Building, Lansing
Agenda:
HB 4209 – (Rep. Zorn) – Crimes; penalties; crime of soliciting sex act from a minor who is at least 16 years of age; increase penalties.
HB 4210 – (Rep. Kowall) – Criminal procedure; sentencing guidelines; sentencing guidelines for crime of soliciting a minor 16 years of age or older to commit prostitution; amend to reflect increased penalty.
HB 5108 – (Rep. Kelly) – Crimes; other; resale of event tickets at higher or lower prices; allow.
Education
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 15
Time: 2:30 p.m.*
Location: Room 352, House Office Building, Lansing, MI
Agenda:
The meeting will feature a presentation by the Michigan Department of Education on the Report on Options for Assessments Aligned with the Common Core State Standards. As the State of Michigan moves forward with the implementation of the Common Core State Standards, the report outlines different testing options that will be used to assess students under the new standards.
Here is a link to the report from the Michigan Department of Education: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mde/Common_Core_Assessment_Option_Report_441322_7.pdf
*Please note that committees scheduled to meet in the afternoon may start later than the posted time if the legislative session lasts longer than originally anticipated.