A Bill Can Be ‘Held’ by a Legislative Committee in Several Ways

In the California Legislature, a bill can be “held” in three distinct ways, which seems rather odd because it would appear that the end result is the same – the bill is not moving forward from the policy or fiscal committee in the Assembly or Senate. So, what are the ways a bill can be “held”?

First, a bill can be “held in committee,” which means that the bill failed to garner a majority of the committee’s members to cast an aye vote and thereby pass the bill out of the policy or fiscal committee.

Second, a bill can be “held under submission,” which means that, after the bill was heard in committee, there appears to be a desire to continue to work on the bill further and so no motion is made to move the bill out of committee (because it would likely fail). The bill may be set for another hearing thereafter.

Third, a bill can be “held without recommendation,” which means that, after the bill was heard in committee, there does not appear to be any desire to work on the bill further and so no motion is made to move the bill out of committee (because it would likely fail). Nonetheless, the bill may be set for another hearing thereafter.

Finally, a bill is deemed to have been “held in committee” when the chairperson of the policy or fiscal committee decides not to set the bill for a hearing, or when the Assembly or Senate Appropriations Committee keeps (or “holds”) a bill on its respective Suspense File, which means that the bill does not progress from the fiscal committee.