“Legislative floor action” isn’t the newest TikTok dance move from your legislators, instead it refers to that time during session when the two houses convene on the legislative floor (or in this case Zoom) to vote on bills. Bill proposals have until March 9 to receive a vote in their house of origin – House bills in the House and Senate bills in the Senate.

In other words: it’s crunch time. This is when we strive to make sure good bills keep moving and problematic bills don’t. We urge you to keep sending those messages to your local legislators about what is important to your city and to all cities across the state.

It’s crunch time. This is when we strive to make sure good bills keep moving and problematic bills don’t.

When communicating with legislators, please share AWC’s weekly Hot Sheet. We have updated the format to include more information about the status of each bill, given committee activity and pending floor action.

How are cities faring this session?

It is still early to tell how city issues are holding up thus far. However, your AWC staff are optimistic. Many of our priorities are still advancing and we are actively engaged in key conversations on critical topics like housing, police reform, and transportation funding. Unfortunately, a number of bills that are problematic to cities are still alive and advancing through the legislative process. The Hot Sheet provides a snapshot of these bills, both the good and the bad.

As we move into the next few weeks of session, the Legislature will give more focus to bills that address both our policy and budget priorities. Last week, AWC sent this letter to the legislative budget leaders highlighting some of the critical funding needs for cities.

Likely dead? Bills are up against cutoff deadlines

The first deadline was Monday, February 15, followed by today’s fiscal committee cutoff. The fiscal committees include the House Finance, Appropriations, Capital Budget and Transportation Committees and the Senate Ways & Means and Transportation Committees. Bills that don’t meet cutoff deadlines are generally considered “dead” for the remainder of the session.

2021 cutoff deadlines:

• February 15 – Deadline for bills to pass out of policy committees.
• February 22 – Deadline for bills to pass out of fiscal committees. Bills with fiscal impacts typically must be heard in both a policy committee and a fiscal committee.
• March 9 – Deadline for bills to pass their house of origin. House of origin is the body where the bill originated.
• March 26 – Deadline for bills to pass out of the policy committees in the opposite house.
• April 2 – Deadline for bills to pass out of the fiscal committees in the opposite house.
• April 11 – Deadline for bills (not related to the budget) to pass the opposite house.
• April 25 – Session ends (Sine Die).

The deadlines do not necessarily apply to bills related to or necessary to implement the budget (NTIB).

Still a little fuzzy on the cutoff process?

Check out this AWC video, where we provide a brief explanation about bill cutoff deadlines and what they mean for the life of a bill.

If you have any questions about the legislative process or a particular bill, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Government Relations team. We are always ready and willing to help.