Republican Leaders Learn Inner Workings of Committee Process

Republican Senators and Delegates met with members of the National Conference of State Legislators for a detailed look into something they participated in, but never been in charge of before: committees.

In-coming House Speaker Tim Armstead and Senate President Bill Cole invited the group to Charleston to lead a morning session taking Republican leaders through the ins and outs of organizing and running a committee meeting, setting agendas and managing not just time, but also the committee members.

“What we really tried to stress today beyond the dynamics of what you do or don’t do as far as the rules is remember it’s always about people,” Mike Haridopolos said.

Haridopolos is a former Florida State Senator, serving as the Senate’s President from 2010-2012. He and Georgia State Senator Don Balfour led senators through case studies on various issues that may come up during the committee process.

“Don and I had the opportunity to serve in the legislature for many years. We’ve see a lot of the issues that they’re going to confront,” Haridopolos said. “A lot of the issues that were in Florida or Georgia are going to come around here in West Virginia.”

All of the committee chairs and vice chairs in both the House and Senate will take over running those meetings for the first time during the upcoming session with the exception of one.

Senator Daniel Hall made the switch from the Democrat to Republican Party in November and he will chair the Senate’s Labor and Agriculture Committees. He previously served as the Vice Chair of the chamber’s Committee on Labor.