With about two-thirds of the legislative session left to go, state lawmakers have whittled down thousands of bills.
Last week marked an important deadline for lawmakers: Thursday was the first lateral deadline, which means any bill with a chance of surviving the session needed to be heard by then to continue on.
Legislators returned Tuesday after a three-day weekend. They will also observe a required five-day recess, returning to their chamber floors on March 2.
At the start of the session, lawmakers pledged to find ways to lower the cost of living, build affordable housing and preserve the state's natural resources through a visitor impact fee.
So far this session, ethics reforms have found favor from both chambers.
Legislators are also moving on legalizing cannabis in the House and Senate. Both chambers are also offering bills to establish statewide sensitive places and gun-related laws. The Senate has also taken up efforts to protect out-of-state patients seeking abortions.
Lawmakers have offered various tax-relief bills, but the House is pushing forward on an administration bill offered by Gov. Josh Green that would restructure the state'stax code.
Some proposals garnered attention but are now dead. A few include enabling online sports betting, changes to the state’s coastal zone management plan, and several measures to control feral chickens.
So far, more than 30 bills have crossed over between the two chambers.
