The Senate didn’t vote today on whether to allow live webcasting of audio and video of its proceedings, and Majority Leader Michael Sanchez appeared to blame the sponsor of the bill that would allow webcasting for its possible failure.
On Saturday, The Senate accepted two amendments to Senate Resolution 3, sponsored by Mark Boitano, R-Albuquerque, ensuring that it needs an unlikely two-thirds vote of approval to pass, instead of the simple majority it would have needed had it not been amended.
The amendments, proposed by Sen. John Sapien, D-Corrales, restrict allowable camera angles and create an oversight body to handle webcasting. It’s not clear when the Senate will vote on the bill, but it’s essentially up to Sanchez.
During today’s meeting of the Senate Rules Committee, Sanchez, a webcasting opponent, said he wanted to “remind the committee” that, when it considered Boitano’s resolution, Sanchez brought up the fact that Sapien would be proposing amendments. Sanchez said he asked Boitano at that time to agree to delay the Rules Committee’s vote on the bill to allow the committee time to consider the amendments.
“He said, ‘I’ll take my chances on the Senate floor,’” Sanchez said.
Had the amendments been added to the resolution before the Rules Committee approved it, the resolution would need a simple majority for approval now, instead of the two-thirds vote.
“I just want everybody to remember that,” Sanchez said.
The reality: Sanchez and some others in the Senate want to kill this bill and reject any attempt to increase transparency. They’re trying to find a way to kill it.
Making the Senate more accessible to the citizens of the state would seem like a no-brainer. There’s no good argument against doing it.