Legislative Glossary

Act: A bill passed by the legislature and signed into law by the governor, or passed over the Governor’s veto.

Acts and Resolves: A compilation of the bills and resolves enacted and passed by the legislature and signed by the governor in any given year.

Adverse Report: A committee recommendation that a matter ought not to pass.

Amendment: Change, addition or deletion in the wording of a Bill under consideration either in Committee or in Chamber.

Bill: A document accompanying a petition, usually asking for legislative action of a permanent nature.

By request: This phrase, found after the name of a legislator in the sponsor section on the top of a printed Bill, indicates that the legislator does not endorse the Bill, but that it was introduced as the result of the right of Free Petition.

Calendar: Also called the Orders of the Day, the calendar is the daily agenda of the House and Senate.

Caucus: Meeting of legislators of the same political party to decide policy and course of action.

Chambers: The two meeting places of the House and Senate where the formal business of the day is conducted. Chamber galleries are open to the public.

Code of Massachusetts Regulations (CMR): These published regulations are created and enforced by Executive Branch Agencies.

Committee Report: The report is not a written document but the recommendation of a Committee that a bill ought to pass, ought not to pass, or ought to pass with an amendment.

Committee: a group consisting of members of the House and Senate (Joint Committees) or House or Senate members only (Standing Committees), and empowered to study and research Bills under their consideration, hold public hearings and report on Bills.

Concurrence: Agreement by one branch with an action originating in the other branch.

Conference Committee: A small special committee appointed by the leadership to iron out differences between the House and Senate versions of a Bill. Their report must either be accepted or rejected, it cannot be amended.

Constitutional Convention: Meeting of the Senate and House of Representatives in the House Chamber to consider and vote on proposed constitutional amendments. The procedure is governed by special rules adopted by both branches.

Daily List: List of committee hearings giving the committee, its matters, and the time and room number of each hearing.

Docket Book: A book located in the clerk's office which lists all the legislation filed in any one legislative year.

Emergency Preamble: A preamble to a bill setting forth the facts constituting an emergency, and the statement that the law is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, safety or convenience. Matters with emergency preambles become law immediately upon approval by the governor.

Enactment: Final approval of an Engrossed Bill by both branches. Enacted Bills are sent to the Governor by the Senate.

Engrossment: the procedure whereby any Bill, certified to be ready for enactment, is typed in simulated script on special paper in the Engrossing Division.

Favorable Report: A committee recommendation that a matter "ought to pass". A matter takes its first reading at this time.

Filibuster: A deliberate obstruction of the legislative process by making a long speech.

Filing Date: The date by which Petitions and their accompanying Bills or Resolves must be filed. Documents for the next session must be filed with the Clerk of the House or Senate on or before the first Wednesday in November in non-election years,and on or before the first Wednesday in December during election years.

First Reading: This is the first of three mandatory readings in each branch of the General Court. This reading is the account of the Committee Report delivered by the Clerk of the House or Senate.

Formal Session: Meeting to consider and act upon reports of committees, messages from the governor, petitions, orders, enactment papers from the other branch, matters in the Orders of the Day, and various other matters which may be controversial in nature and during which roll call votes may be taken.

Free Petition: In Massachusetts all citizens have the right to petition the state legislature. This procedure is called the right of free petition. A citizen drafts and files a Petition and accompanying Bill. A legislator sponsors the Bill in the General Court.

General Court: The official name for the Massachusetts legislature, usually used when referring to both branches. It is also sometimes called the Great and General Court.

General Laws: All of the laws of Massachusetts of a general and permanent nature. These are embodied in an Official Edition, and are codified according to a system of chapters and parts.

Governor's Message: A message through which the Governor may introduce proposals for legislation; message is written in letter format to the General Court, and the Bill accompanies the message.

Grandfather Clause: A provision in a bill which exempts persons presently practicing or involved in the legislatively restricted activity from the provisions of the statute.

Home Rule Petition: Legislation filed to address the needs of a particular municipality or at the request of, and with the approval of, that municipality and which does not affect generally the laws of Massachusetts.

Informal Sessions: Sessions of the House or Senate that take up matters which are non-controversial nature and which do not require roll-call voting by the members.

Initiative Petition: Request by ten voters to submit a constitutional amendment or law to the people for approval or rejection. The petition is introduced into the General Court if signed by a number of citizens equaling three percent of the entire vote for governor in the preceding gubernatorial election. A proposed initiative constitutional amendment, approved by at least one-fourth of the General Court, sitting in joint sessions by two consecutively elected General Courts can be placed on the ballot.

Joint Committee: A joint committee is composed of members of both branches of the legislature.

Journals: The official account of the daily sessions of the General Court, and containing procedural information of the process of legislative events, but not verbatim accounts of any debates.

Late Filed Bill: A Bill which is filed after the Filing Date with the Clerk of the House or Senate, and approved by 4/5 of the members of the branch where the bill is introduced.

Legislative Documents: The bound volumes of the Bills, Resolves, Governor's Messages, and other documents relating to legislation.

Money Bill: A bill that imposes a tax or otherwise transfers money or property from the people to the Commonwealth, and which must be taken up in the House of Representatives first.

Orders of the Day: Calendar of matters to be considered by the Senate or the House of Representatives.

Override: To overturn the governor's veto by a 2/3 vote of the members present in both the House and the Senate.

Paired votes: A procedure allowed only in the Senate, where two Senators may combine a negative vote with a positive vote, thereby cancelling each other out. One Senator must be present for the actual vote, and paired votes are not counted as part of the official tally.

Passed to be Enacted: The procedure where by an engrossed bill or resolve is read by title by the Senate President or House Speaker for a final vote prior to transmittal to the Governor by the Clerk of the Senate.

Passed to be Engrossed: The procedure permitting final action on a bill or resolve by the House or Senate prior to enactment.

Petition: Formal document to request consideration of a proposal to the legislature. The proposal, usually a Bill or a Resolve, accompanies the petition.

Pocket Veto: A veto resulting from the governor's failure to sign a bill following prorogation or dissolution of the second annual session of the General Court. Because the session has ended, the bill will not automatically become law after ten days and the General Court has no opportunity to override the veto.

Prorogation: The formal adjournment of the yearly session of the legislature by the Governor. If the General Court is not prorogued before the first Wednesday of January, the session is automatically dissolved at midnight on the Tuesday before the first Wednesday of January and the commencement of the new session.

Quorum: The number of members needed to conduct the sessions. A Roll Call Vote may be called if there is a request to determine if a quorum is present.

Recommittal: The process of sending a bill back to the committee that reported it out for further consideration.

Reconsideration: A motion to reconsider a vote on action previously taken. Any member may propose reconsideration and if the motion prevails, the matter is voted on again.

Redraft: New version of a Bill which shows substantial changes. Redrafts have different Bill numbers from the original Bill.

Referendum Petition: A petition signed by a specified number of voters to repeal a law enacted by the legislators, and requesting that the legislation be suspended until the vote is taken.

Refile: A petition similar to one which was presented to the General Court in a previous year.

Report of a Committee: Recommendation of the committee to which the matter has been referred.

Reporting Date: The date, the last Wednesday in April, on which all Bills must be reported out of Joint Committees, unless the rules are suspended.

Reprint: A corrected copy of a Bill which shows the changes in a Bill which are of an editorial nature. Corrected reprints have the same Bill number as the original.

Resolution: A statement of the House or Senate or both branches together on a particular topic or event of concern to them. The titles of resolutions are found in the Journals.

Resolve: Document accompanying a petition, usually asking for legislative action of a temporary or immediate nature, such as establishing temporary investigative commissions.

Right of Free Petition: The right of every citizen of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to petition the General Court for legislation on any subject.

Roll Call Vote: A recorded vote of the House or Senate, also called Yeas and Nays. All other votes are unrecorded voice votes.

Second Reading: The process for reading a bill a second time prior to discussion and debate on the merits of a Bill. Normally only the title is read, unless a member objects.

Senate and House Journals: Record of proceedings in each chamber for each legislative day, including matters considered, amendments offered and votes taken.

Session Law: A law passed within a legislative session. They are numbered in the order they are passed, but are separate from the General Laws. Session laws may, however, amend General Laws.

Session: The period during which the legislature meets and carries on its business.

Special Law: A legislative act applying to a particular county, city, town or district, individual or group of individuals and not general in nature; distinguished from the General Laws.

Standing Committees: A committee of the House or Senate only, not including joint members, and which are permanent in nature.

Study Order: An order through which Bills are sent back to the Joint Committees for further investigation and study. Normally used for bills that the legislature is not ready to move forward on.

Substitution: Procedure by which an adverse report of a committee is overturned. Technically, the bill is substituted for the adverse report, reviving the legislation.

Third Reading: the process by which a bill is read a third time, prior to engrossment. The third reading occurs after a vote of approval for the Bill's second reading, and before final review. A bill may be debated and amended at third reading, just as at second reading.

Veto: The action of the governor in disapproval of a measure. It includes a statement of the reasons why the governor has not approved the measure and is sent to the chamber from which the bill originated.