With little discussion and by a vote of 23-1, the upper chamber in the Hawaii state legislature passed SB 1005 with amendments added during the committee stage. The measure now heads to the House, where a similar bill was deferred in committee earlier this session after it failed to meet a deadline. But the House version was deferred because the Senate companion was further along in the legislative process.
Hawaii is the lone remaining state under unified Democratic control with no state-run presidential primary. That looks to change for 2024. Obviously, the bill would come back to the Senate if the House makes any changes, and one area that might force another Senate vote is the appropriation for the new, separate presidential primary election. There is an expenditure called for, but it remains blank in the version the Senate just passed. Ultimately, those funds come out of the Office of Elections and the amount (estimated at $2.7 million) may be specified more clearly in their budget.
If that proves to be a snag, it will likely be a minor one. SB 1005 now moves to the state House.
Related:
--
Recent posts:
No comments:
Post a Comment