Advance apology to the Bureau of Legislative Research re: last minute filings

I've kept a folder since the close of the 2007 session of potential legislation from article clippings, notes, ideas, etc that I've collected, and I skimmed the list last night of bills I previously decided not to file from it. Naturally, I've changed my mind on a couple of them and will be calling to have a few bills drafted today (the last day to file bills). This is the busiest and most stressful day of the year for bill drafters in the Bureau and for the clerk's office. I figured a public apology in advance is in order, but I'm going to try and hammer out the title and purpose of each of these myself to deflect some of the names I'm about to be called. It's permissible to file a bill limited to a title and a fairly broad purpose (called a "shell" bill) that can be amended later, so long as it's within the confines of the original purpose.

It's always interesting to hang around until the desk closes tonight to see what does get filed at the last minute. We could potentially see an alternative lottery bill or alternative bills to other hot topics currently being debated. I also expect a few shell bills to be filed today on behalf of organizations who are wanting a stockpile of "just in case" legislation to leverage an issue or two that's already pending or to have a pre-emptive response to any legislation that could potentially target them.