Extension of the 86th General Assembly

This afternoon, HCR1042 has been filed and distributed and will be considered soon (read it here). An identical resolution has been filed in the Senate (SCR28). They provide for the legislature to adjourn on Tuesday. Article 5, Section 17 of the Arkansas Constitution states that regular biennial sessions "shall not exceed sixty days in duration unless by a vote of two-thirds of each house."

This particular resolution calls for the session to be extended until May 1st at Noon, but that each House shall enter into recess as of the close of business on April 3rd. The 5/1 sine die date allows for the legislature to reconvene to consider any potential vetoes, correcting errors, considering proposed constitutional amendments, etc. We recessed in 2005 on April 13th with a sine die date of May 13th.

Update (5:00 p.m.): The House just passed both resolutions 100-0.