Two bills to reduce the size of the State house and Senate have passed its respective committee and are on their way to the House floor for a vote.
House majority leader Dave Reed said in a media release that the two bills would reduce the house from 203 members to 151 and the senate from 50 to 31. The bills passed the House State Government Committee by a 14-10 vote, and will be scheduled for consideration by the full House in the next few weeks.
Changing the size of the state legislature requires an amendment to the state constitution, which means that it must pass two consecutive sessions, and be approved by a voter referendum. The language in House Bill 153, which deals with the house size, was passed by both chambers of the general assembly last session, and it could be on the general election ballot in November, provided it passes by July of this year. However, House Bill 253, which deals with shrinking the size of the Senate, has not previously passed the House or Senate.
