CONFERENCE COMMITTEES


A conference committee is the vehicle through which a compromise
is reached when the House and Senate pass different versions of a
bill dealing with the same topic. To become law, bills passed by
both the House and the Senate must be identical. 

Conference committees, with either three or five members from
each body, are named to work out a compromise between the House
and the Senate positions on specific bills.

House conferees are appointed by the speaker. The author of the
bill and usually the chair of the committee that first approved
the bill are automatically chosen. In addition, at least one and
as many as two supporters of the bill, or opponents, are chosen.

In the Senate, the Rules and Administration Committee appoints
members to conference committees, but the Senate majority leader
also influences those decisions. Generally, the author of a bill
in dispute and members of the standing committees which helped
craft the bill are considered first.

The House and Senate conferees then meet, much like a regular
committee, and decide on a final version of the bill. The bill is
then sent back to each body to be voted upon. No amendments can
be made to the conference committee's final bill.

If one or both bodies reject the conference committee report, the
bill -- provided there is enough time -- is sent back to another
conference committee which attempts to reach a more palatable
compromise.



Originally published in 1990 in the Session Weekly, a weekly
newsmagazine published by the Minnesota House Public Information
Office.

***Last Update 8/5/94 (jtt) Last Review 8/5/94 (jtt) ***