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GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LEGISLATIVE POLICY COMMITTEE


Report to General Assembly on bills, resolutions, & recommendations intended for submission at next session.

Report to General Assembly updating matters before Committee due periodically.


The Legislative Policy Committee originated in 1939 as the Legislative Council (Chapter 62, Acts of 1939). The Council was reorganized under its current name in 1976 (Chapter 362, Acts of 1976).

The work of the standing committees of the General Assembly is supervised and coordinated by the Legislative Policy Committee. The Committee appoints special committees and subcommittees to study legislative matters and studies the rules and procedures of the Senate and House of Delegates. During the interim between sessions of the General Assembly, the Committee refers recommended subject matter it receives to interim committees, holds hearings on any subject matter, and subpoenas witnesses and records as required. The Committee may prepare its own legislative recommendations and may endorse a legislative program in the form of bills, resolutions, or other proposals to be submitted to the General Assembly.

The Committee consists of twenty-eight members: fourteen from the Senate, fourteen from the House of Delegates. Representing the Senate are the Senate President; President Pro Tem; Majority Leader; Minority Leader; and the chairs of the standing committees on Budget and Taxation; Education, Health and Environmental Affairs; Finance; and Judicial Proceedings. The Senate President appoints six additional senators as members. Representing the House of Delegates are the House Speaker; Speaker Pro Tem; Majority Leader; Minority Leader; and the chairs of the standing committees on Appropriations, Commerce and Government Matters, Economic Matters, Environmental Matters, Judiciary, and Ways and Means. The House Speaker appoints four additional delegates as members. If a senator or delegate serves simultaneously in more than one of the ex officio positions, the President or Speaker appoints an additional member to ensure that each chamber always is represented by fourteen members. The Senate President and House Speaker serve as co-chairs (Code State Government Article, secs. 2-401 through 2-410).

ARTICLE 27 REVISION COMMITTEE
In 1992, the Legislative Policy Committee established the Article 27 Revision Committee to review laws relating to crimes and punishments. To date, the Revision Committee has recommended, and the General Assembly has passed, substantive revisions of laws on arson and burglary, assault, disorderly conduct, escape from detention, explosives, trespass, and victims' rights.

CODE REVISION COMMITTEE
From 1970 until 1985, recodification of the Annotated Code of Maryland was carried out under the supervision of the Commission to Revise the Annotated Code of Maryland. In 1985, the Legislative Policy Committee began to oversee Code revision under a reorganized structure of small committees with continuing review by the General Assembly. To streamline code revision, the Senate President and House Speaker in 1986 formed the Code Revision Committee as a "steering committee." Renamed the Article Selection Committee by 1987, it received its present name in 1990.

The Committee is concerned with the Annotated Code of Maryland. Appointed by the Legislative Policy Committee, the Committee provides advice on which Articles of the Code require revision. The Committee also recommends persons to serve on Article revision committees.

The General Assembly has enacted into law the following twenty-eight articles:

To conclude the recodification process, four articles remain to be completed or prepared and enacted into law, including alcoholic beverages, economic development, human services and local government.

Under the Code Revision Committee are individual review committees for articles in production. Currently under review are articles concerned with Economic Development, Housing, and Human Services.

MANAGEMENT SUBCOMMITTEE
The Management Subcommittee of the Legislative Policy Committee was initiated informally in 1979 to consider certain in-house legislative issues, such as legislative agency budgets and staff, and expense guidelines for district offices and travel.

The Senate President and House Speaker appoint the Subcommittee's members.

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