Education Omnibus Ammended in House, Now Heads Back to Senate

Mar 05, 2008 by Elizabeth Ziegler

(KCPW News) A controversial education omnibus bill faced several bi-partisan attacks in the House. The bill eventually passed out of the body, after a handful of attempts to amend it. The two-hour debate took up most of the morning, and at times, got personal.

"Some of you say, ‘What's going on?' That happens on this body if you don't pay attention. Have things happened on this floor that maybe some of you have missed. Maybe you walked in at the last minute off the floor. Yes it has," said Representative Ron Bigelow, the Executive Committee Co-Chairman.

Bigelow, from West Valley City, was responding to Democratic Representative Lou Shurtliff, from Ogden, who raised concerns about how Republican Leadership crafted the omnibus bill. The exchange prompted House Minority Leader Representative Brad King to call for more civility.

"Every member of this body has the right to stand up and give an opinion about a bill. And their integrity shouldn't be questioned," King says. "They have a right to say they don't like the process. They have a right to say they don't like an amendment. And I would just like everyone to respect that right for everyone."

Incidentally, controversy from the education omnibus spilled over into debate about a tax omnibus proposal debated in the House Wednesday morning. The tax omnibus included five bills that passed with overwhelming support, but when lumped together, garnered significant resistance in the form of 23 "No" votes. The education omnibus bill, Senate Bill 2, now heads back to the Senate, where the three amendments made in the House will get a hearing. Less than 12 hours remain for the body to approve the bill.

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