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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2015 - 2016
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | June 23, 2015 04:41 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Patrick J. Stefano |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Establishing Term Limits for Committee Chairs |
| In the near future, I plan to introduce legislation that would place a term limit of 6 years on committee chairmanships appointed by the Senate President Pro Tempore or Speaker of the House. This reform would not affect leadership positions elected by members of the caucus. I came to Harrisburg believing that if a majority of the Senate or the House supported a piece of legislation it would be brought to the floor for a vote. However, during my short time here, I have learned that this is often not the case. This reform is not a new idea, the US House and Senate already institute term limits on their committee chairs. Limiting these terms will accomplish several goals. First, it will incentivize the chair of a committee to make the most of their time and remain active in their role. Also, it will ensure a legislative idea cannot simply be shelved forever because a particular legislator doesn’t like it. Finally, it will allow a diversity of ideas to be represented in the chairmanship of a committee in relatively short order. I hope you will join me in sponsoring this important piece of reform legislation. |
Introduced as SB1015