LD 1313, the "Death With Dignity" bill, passed both House and Senate in the first pass this week, and today (Monday) the enactment vote in the House passed by one vote. The final enactment vote in the Senate is expected later this week.

Roll call votes were held in the House and Senate, and today's enactment vote in the House, 73-72, was also by roll call. One House seat is vacant, and there were three representatives absent and two excused.

The Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee held work sessions on some of the firearm safety bills last week. LD 379 (safe storage) had a committee vote of 8-4 against passage, although we believe that vote may not be an accurate indication of its chances of passage. LD 1276 (background checks) was completely modified in a proposed amendment and had a divided vote in Committee. There was an evenly divided, 6-6 vote on LD 1099 (waiting periods for purchase).  The vote on LD 533, a "stand your ground" bill supported by the NRA and SAM, was 7-4 against passage.

In the Judiciary Committee the "red flag" bill, LD 1312, did not fare well; however, there is a new bill, LD 1811, which will have a public hearing on June 5th and a work session June 6th. This modified red flag bill is being negotiated among various parties, and it is too soon to know what its form will be coming out of committee.

The legislature's committee work is almost finished. On June 3rd the Legislature moved to a 5-day-per-week schedule of full sessions in the House and Senate, where members will debate divided committee reports and process unanimous reports through the consent calendar with a goal of meeting the June 19th statutory adjournment deadline.