12:15
PM CDT on Tuesday, August 10, 2004
By DAN BRANCH
Today, citizens can watch
video of all legislative hearings, debates and votes in real or recorded time
via www.capitol.state.tx.us. Bill drafts,
meeting agendas and journals of proceedings also can be found on the site. More
legislative votes are currently recorded than you may have realized. All votes
on constitutional amendments must be recorded. In addition, every proposed bill
is referred to a committee of lawmakers. Every committee must record its votes.
Whether on the floor of the
House or Senate, a recorded vote in the Texas Legislature is simple to achieve.
The Texas Constitution states that a vote should be recorded upon the request
of three members (three out of 150 in the House; three out of 31 in the
Senate), a lower threshold than in the United States Congress where votes are
recorded when requested by "one-fifth of those present in the
chamber."
The increasingly
competitive nature of our political system prompts widespread recorded votes.
Members on different sides of issues want to expose their opponents' views.
Since 1999, the number of regular-session recorded votes in the House has
increased by more than 76 percent. In the most recently concluded special
session on public school finance, 24 out of 26 substantive votes were recorded
in the House.
Moreover, a majority of
bills passed by the Legislature have very limited application and are
undisputed "local and uncontested" bills (e.g., legislation relating to
the composition of the Comal County Juvenile Board). If five House members
oppose such a bill, it moves to the agenda of debatable bills. During the last
regular session, more than 55 percent of bills that passed the House were
uncontested.
Finally, votes often are
recorded so that the new law takes immediate effect. If a bill receives
two-thirds' approval, it will take effect as soon as the governor signs it
instead of on a prospective date. The only way to prove a bill has a
two-thirds' majority is to record the vote.
Supporting more open
government is generally akin to motherhood and apple pie. At the same time, I
am cautious of the unintended consequences of hastily changing our founders'
standards. They created a citizens' Legislature that meets 140 days every two
years. That is a brief time to create policy for a state of 22 million people
and 261,000 square miles. Recording every vote indiscriminately might impede
the legislative process and add considerable costs. Mandating that all votes be
recorded, even on procedural or local matters, would absorb valuable time
without adding meaningful disclosure.
Requiring that procedural
votes be recorded would expand the opportunity for misinterpretation of a
legislator's intent by special interest groups. For example, a legislator may
vote "no" on an amendment that he/she favors because an even better
one is forthcoming.
As a solution, I favor
recording final votes on all substantive legislation (i.e., not procedural or
local matters). Teachers take grades on final submissions, not drafts in
progress. So should the Legislature.
Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, offered legislation earlier this year
that would create more transparency. Lawmakers should take a serious look at
this proposal. Substantive votes ought to be promptly posted on the Web and
easily accessed by citizens. My recommendation is to move carefully toward
constitutional change. The goal should be more transparency and accountability
without creating negative consequences. Requiring record votes on final passage
of all substantive legislation seems like an appropriate balance.
State Rep.