LINCOLN- The 2024 session has passed the halfway mark with plenty of work ahead. Lawmakers will continue to split their days between morning floor debates and afternoon committee hearings through the end of the month, as they sort through nearly 600 bills introduced this year, plus bills that remain in play from last year. Speaker John Arch said he is pleased with the progress and tenor of the first half of the short session.

Senators have collaborated on the floor to address concerns or find compromises, he said, while committees are taking time to give bills thorough consideration before advancing them for debate by the full body."I think last year's session was a motivator, to put it mildly," Arch said. "It motivated people to find another way to do this, and as a result of that, we said 'there's a process here that works, let's go back and relearn that.'"

"People that have bills and want those bills to pass are talking to those who come to committee hearings, or perhaps other senators, and a lot of times that results in a minor change that clears the opposition," he said. "That has made for better bills." As the Legislature takes the turn for home, Arch said he hopes the spirit of good governance and collaboration experienced so far continues.

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