A bill that would open legislative conference committees to the public cleared its first hurdle in the House on Monday.
Members of the Judiciary Committee unanimously approved House Bill 393, sponsored by Rep. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces. Approval was expected. The House has overwhelmingly approved opening conference committees for several years.
It’s in the Senate that the proposal has been killed by the slimmest of margins on an annual basis.
Cervantes said in a news release that opening conference committees is about helping legislators, the media and the public.
“Effectively representing our constituents requires an opportunity for legislators to participate in all committee meetings,” Cervantes said. “Increasing transparency for the public and press will improve the dialogue and assure accountability.”
Conference committee meetings are currently closed to the public, including legislators who aren’t members of the committee. The committees convene when the House and Senate must reconcile differences between versions of the same proposal that both chambers have approved. Typically, committees are made up of three senators and three representatives.
Under Cervantes’ bill, conference committee meetings would be open to the public and committees would be required to provide reasonable notice of their meetings.
The bill now heads to the House Appropriations and Finance Committee.