Reps. Ward and Waters offered the following resolution:

            House Resolution No. 152.

A resolution to amend the Standing Rules of the House of Representatives.

            Resolved by the House of Representatives, That Rule 36 of the Standing Rules of the House of Representatives be amended to read as follows:

"Uniform Committee Rules.

            Rule 36. (1)  Committees and subcommittees shall operate under the rules of the House and the uniform committee rules which shall be published in the House Journal.  The Clerk of the House shall assign committee clerks with the approval of the respective committee Chairs.  Duties of committee clerks shall be prescribed by the Clerk of the House.

            (2)        Special committees shall operate under the same rules as standing committees insofar as practical.  Conference committees on House bills shall meet at a place assigned by the Clerk.

            (3)        All committees will operate under the following rules and other uniform committee rules as determined and published by the Speaker:

            (a)        A quorum of a committee shall consist of a majority of the Members appointed and serving;

            (b)        Members of standing committees may not check in for a committee meeting and leave their vote.  Members of committees may only cast a vote if they are present at the meeting during the vote;

            (c)        All motions pertaining to committee business require support from a second member of the committee before the committee can act on and carry the original motion;

            (d) It shall require an affirmative vote of a majority of the Members appointed to and serving on a committee in order to:

            (i)         Report a bill or resolution out of committee

            (ii)        Amend or substitute a bill or resolution

            (iii)       Reconsider a vote to report a bill or joint resolution from committee

            (e)        Provided a quorum of a committee is present, it shall require an affirmative vote of a majority of the Members voting in order to:

            (i)         Table a bill or resolution

            (ii)        Take a bill or resolution from the table

            (iii)       Reconsider a vote, other than in subdivision (d)(iii)

            (f)         It shall require an affirmative vote of a majority of the Members voting in order to:

            (i)         Postpone action on a bill or resolution

            (ii)        Recess

            (iii)       Adjourn a meeting

            (g)        Each chair of a standing committee shall determine the agenda for a committee meeting; and

            (h)        The chair of a standing committee may create subcommittees and shall designate the bill(s), resolution(s) or topic(s) to be considered by each subcommittee.  The chair of the standing committee shall designate a chair of the subcommittee and shall appoint Members to each subcommittee.

            (4)        The Speaker may designate additional Members to serve on any subcommittee of the A STANDING Committee COMMITTEE on Appropriations as voting members who do not serve on the full committee.

            (5)        Subcommittees of standing committees shall follow the same rules as standing committees.

            (6)        Meetings or public hearings of committees may be scheduled outside of Lansing with prior written approval of the Speaker. Subcommittees must have the prior written approval of the chair of the standing committee and the Speaker in order to conduct a public hearing or meeting outside of Lansing.

            (7)        All meetings or public hearings of committees or subcommittees shall comply with the following procedures in order to assure public access (See Const 1963, Art 4 §§ 16 and 17):

            (a)        All meetings or public hearings shall be open to the public and accessible;

            (b)        The right of any person to attend a meeting or public hearing includes the right to tape‑record, videotape, and/or broadcast live on radio or television;

            (c)        As defined in paragraph (7)(b), the right of any person to attend a meeting or public hearing may not be conditioned on prior approval of, or notice to, the committee or subcommittee;

            (d)        All decisions of a committee or subcommittee shall be made at a public meeting.  A committee may not round robin a bill nor may the roll call vote of a committee be left open;

(e)        The right of a person to attend a meeting or public hearing shall not be limited by a requirement that she or he register or otherwise provide his or her name or other identifying information to the committee, the committee chair, a subcommittee or a subcommittee chair;

            (f)         A person shall not be excluded from a meeting or public hearing of a committee or subcommittee except for a breach of the peace or in order to protect the health and safety of all persons in attendance at the meeting;

            (g)        A rescheduled or a special meeting of a committee or subcommittee shall be posted at least 18 hours before the scheduled meeting time.  No committee or subcommittee shall remain in session or stand in recess beyond the hour of 12:00 midnight; and

(h)        Notice of committee or subcommittee meetings or public hearings shall include notice that individuals needing special services to fully participate in the meeting or public hearing may contact the committee or subcommittee chair to request the necessary assistance.

            (8)        Each committee shall have written minutes prepared of each meeting.  The minutes shall include the date, time, place, Members present, Members absent, Members excused, and any decisions which were made.  The minutes shall also include all roll call votes taken at the meeting.  The proposed minutes of a meeting shall be available for inspection by the public within 8 working days of the meeting. Minutes shall be approved by the committee at a subsequent meeting. Approved minutes shall be available for public inspection no later than 5 working days after approval.

            (9)        Committees shall excuse a Member from attending a committee meeting:

            (a)        Upon a showing of personal illness;

            (b)        Because of a death in the immediate family;

            (c)        Upon showing of serious immediate family illness;

            (d)        Because the Member is in attendance at some other committee meeting; and

            (e)        Any other reason the committee deems appropriate.

            (10)      Committees shall not meet during a session of the House without the consent of the House.

            (11)      There shall be no smoking during a meeting of a standing committee or a subcommittee.

            (12)      To the extent practical, special committees shall follow the same rules as standing committees of the House.

            (13)      Portable telephones shall not be used in a room in which a committee of the House is meeting while that meeting is occurring.

            (14)      With approval of a majority of the Members appointed and serving on the committee, a committee may adopt additional rules provided they do not conflict with the Uniform Standing Committee Rules or with the Standing Rules of the House.

            (15)      A motion for previous question is not in order."