Start of 2021 Legislative Session, New COVID-19 Restrictions, Legislative Toolbox

Start of 2021 Legislative Session

The 2021 legislative session began this week. Both bodies will be working in some hybrid fashion this year. Both the House and Senate will be holding floor sessions with very few members in person and the rest present remotely. The House will operate fully remote for committee hearings and the Senate will operate both fully remote and hybrid for their committee hearings.

Both bodies have now implemented technology that supports secure remote voting during floor sessions for efficiency. Prior to these systems being put in place, a vocal roll call had to be held every time a vote was taken, with each individual legislator responding “aye”, “nay” or “pass”. These votes took approximately 10 minutes each to complete in the House, where there are 134 members. The new voting systems will allow members to vote immediately, which is how the Legislature functioned pre-COVID-19 when all members were physically in the chambers.

Read more: Start of 2021 Legislative Session, New COVID-19 Restrictions, Legislative Toolbox