State Sen. Harman Voices Concern Over Passage of Empty Bills

State Sen. Tom Harman issued a statement last week objecting to 40 empty bills passed in the Senate containing no language—bills, he said, will be amended later by the Assembly to include budget language that hasn't been debated or faced public scrutiny.

"The problem with these spot bills is they go over to the other house completely empty and then down the road they come back with language that has never been voted on; never had public scrutiny and never been vetted by groups with an interest in the policy," Harman, whose district includes Fountain Valley, said. "We are expected to analyze and decide on complicated issues—usually involving billions of dollars—on a moment’s notice."

Last year, Harman said, senators were given a bill that diverted $2 billion dollars from K-12 education to assist with the Governor’s public safety realignment, a bill that was eventually passed less than two hours after it hit the senate floor.

"Do you think the public had time to read this bill? Do you think staff did? That is no way to run a multi-billion dollar budget. This is shameful."