As we saw recently the clock is ticking on the frontloading bills proposed during 2009. The year's legislative session has ended in most states and the crucial cross-over deadline has passed in still more. That particular deadline is typified by what was witnessed in North Carolina in May. For example, a bill has to have passed in its originating chamber and have crossed over to the other legislative chamber for consideration by a particular point in the session. Bills that don't pass by that point are dead for the session.
And this rule came into play in several other states considering primary-shifting legislation in 2009. The catch is that there are several other states, like Georgia, where legislation is allowed to carry over from one legislative session to the next. The table below updates the one from FHQ's original post by adding in the cross-over and carry-over information.
| Frontloading Bills (2009 Legislative Session) | |||||
| State | Bill | Status | Session Adjourns/Cross-over Deadline | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | HB 1021 | passed | May 1/none | moves presidential primary from first Tuesday in February to the Tuesday after the third Monday in May | |
| Florida | HB 759/SB 2304 | died in committee | May 8/none | moves presidential primary from last Tuesday in January to the second Tuesday in March | |
| Georgia | HB 848 | carried over to 2010 session | April 4/March 12 | moves presidential primary from first Tuesday in February to first Tuesday in March | |
| Illinois | HB 2308/SB 46 | in committee/could carry over to 2010 | May 31/April 3 | moves state and local primaries from first Tuesday in February to third Tuesday in March/first Tuesday in June | |
| Indiana | SCR 28 | passed Senate, no action in House | April 29/Feb. 26 | forms commission to investigate moving presidential primary | |
| Minnesota | HF 31/SF 157 | in committee/could carry over to 2010 | May 18/none | creates presidential primary and moves to first Tuesday in February | |
| New Hampshire | HB 341 | in committee/could carry over to 2010 | July 1/ March 25 | allows only Iowa caucus to precede presidential primary | |
| New Jersey | A 2413 | in committee | year-round/none | moves presidential primary from first Tuesday in February to first Tuesday in June | |
| North Carolina | S 150 | in committee/could carry over to 2010 | early July/May 14 | moves presidential primary from first Tuesday after first Monday in May to first Tuesday in February | |
| North Dakota | SB 2288 | passed | May 2/Feb. 20 | eliminates state involvement in presidential preference caucus | |
| Oklahoma | HB 1340 | in committee/could carry over to 2010 | May | shifts financial burden of presidential primary from state to state parties | |
| Oregon | SB 412 | in committee/cannot carry over to 2010 | late June/none | moves presidential primary from third Tuesday in May to first Tuesday in February | |
| Texas | HB 246 | in committee/cannot carry over to 2010 | June 1/May 15 | moves presidential primary from first Tuesday in March to first Tuesday in February | |
| Source(s): National Conference of State Legislatures, MultiState.com | |||||
With the cross-over information added, New Jersey and Oregon are the only states remaining with active bills to frontload their state's 2012 presidential primaries during the 2009 session. The drawback is that the bill in Oregon will have to be acted upon before the end of the session at the end of June. Otherwise the bill will die, and without a carry-over provision in place, similar legislation will have to be reintroduced the next time the legislature convenes. And though the Texas legislature has adjourned, the Lone Star state is in a similar position to Oregon in that there is no carry over there. The New Jersey bill, meanwhile, was already carried over from 2008 to 2009 and will expire when the members of the legislature stand for reelection in November.
However, in several states, 2009 legislation could carry over like Georgia's did. Illinois, Minnesota, New Hampshire, North Carolina and Oklahoma could all have presidential primary-related legislation revived in 2010, though it is less certain in each than in the case of the Peach state.
All in all, it was a quiet cycle for frontloading. The legislature in Arkansas successfully repealed the Natural state's separate presidential primary and Hawaii Republicans adopted a February caucus to replace the Aloha state's May convention. But for the year after an election, that isn't all that surprising.
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