through the legislative process within the 90-day
session. Therefore, legislators often try to intro-
duce their bills as early as possible. A bill filed with
the Secretary of the Senate or the Chief Clerk of
the House prior to the first day of a regular session
is called a profiled bill. Such a bill is introduced (i.e. ,
read across the floor) and assigned to a standing
committee on the opening day of a session, thus
obtaining a head start advantage. In 1994, some
179 Senate bills and 179 House bills were profiled.

BUDGET BILL

The Constitution provides for an annual budget
bill. Each year, the Governor presents a bill to the
General Assembly containing the budget for State
government for the next fiscal year (In Maryland,
the fiscal year begins July 1 and ends June 30.) The
General Assembly may reduce the Governor's
budget proposals, but it may not increase them.
The budget, however, whether it is supplemented
or amended, must be balanced; total estimated
revenues always must be equal to or exceed total
appropriations (Const., Art. III, sec. 52(5a)).
If the General Assembly has not acted upon the
budget bill seven days before the expiration of a
regular session, the Governor by proclamation may
extend the session for action to be taken on the bill.
After both houses pass the budget bill, it becomes
law without further action (Const., Art. III, sec.
52). The Governor may not veto the budget bill.

JOINT RESOLUTIONS

In addition to bills, legislators introduce joint
resolutions. Substantive in nature, joint resolutions
express the will, opinion, or public policy of the
General Assembly (Senate Rule 25, House Rule
25). They are subject to the same legislative process
as are bills, must be passed by both houses, but after
passage are not codified in the Annotated Code.
Joint resolutions that pass both houses are num-
bered and printed in the session laws for that year.
The Governor does not veto joint resolutions and
may or may not sign them.
Certain issues are required by law or the Con-
stitution to be introduced in the form of a joint
resolution and such joint resolutions have the force
and effect of law. Examples include salary recom-
mendations from the General Assembly Compen-
sation Commission, the Governor's Salary
Commission, and the Judicial Compensation Com-
mission, reapportionment plans for General Assem-
bly membership required after every decennial
census, and amendments to the U.S. Constitution
submitted for ratification.

LEGISLATIVE PROCESS
After the Department of Legislative Reference
drafts legislation in the form of a bill or a joint
resolution, the sponsor files it ("drops it into the
hopper") with the Secretary of the Senate or the

Chief Clerk of the House of Delegates. The bill or
resolution is numbered, stamped for approval and
codification by the Department of Legislative Ref-
erence, and printed for first reading (Senate Rule
26, House Rule 26). Senate legislation appears on
white paper and House legislation on blue paper.
The Constitution of Maryland requires that be-
fore any bill becomes law, it must be read on three
different days in each house, for a total of six
readings. A bill may not be read for the third time
in its house of origin until it has been reprinted.
The Constitution also specifies that a bill must be
passed in each house by a majority vote of the total
membership, and the final vote on third reading in
each house must be recorded.

INTRODUCTION OF BILL
(1st READING OF BILL)

A bill may be introduced throughout the ninety
days of a session, but the later a bill is introduced,
the more difficult its passage becomes. Any Senate
bill introduced after the 24th calendar day of a
session must be referred to the Senate Rules Com-
mittee, cannot be required to be returned to the
floor except by a two-thirds vote of the member-
ship, and may not be petitioned from the Rules
Committee (Senate Rule 32). A House bill intro-
duced after the 45th calendar day must be referred
to the House Rules and Executive Nominations
Committee, requires a two thirds vote to be re-
turned to the floor, and cannot be petitioned from
the Rules and Executive Nominations Committee
(House Rule 32). For a bill to be introduced during
the last 35 days of a session, the rules must be
suspended by a two thirds vote (Const., Art. III,
sec. 27). Except for the annual budget bill and bills
creating or amending State debts, a House bill that
crosses over to the Senate after the 76th day of
session is subject to the same restrictions as is a bill
introduced after the 24th day.

COMMITTEES

Standing Committees. After introduction, the
bill is assigned to the appropriate committee for
review. The committee system is a vital part of the
legislative process. Rules of each house require that
every bill or joint resolution, with one exception,
be referred to a standing committee after first
reading (Senate Rule 33, House Rule 33). Standing
committees are defined as those committees set
forth in the Rules of the Senate or the Rules of the
House of Delegates (Code State Government Ar-
ticle, sec. 2-101(f)). Their primary function is to
consider all legislation referred to them by the
Senate President or House Speaker. To review pro-
posed legislation, the Senate has four standing com-
mittees and the House has six (Senate Rule 18,
House Rule 18).
At the beginning of each session, the Senate
President and House Speaker name chairs, vice-