TO AMEND RULE 4.2 OF THE RULES OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, RELATING TO COMMITTEES OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS MAY NOT SERVE MORE THAN THREE CONSECUTIVE TERMS ON THE COMMITTEE AND TO PROVIDE COMPLEMENTARY PROCEDURES.
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:
That Rule 4.2 of the Rules of the House of Representatives is amended to read:
"4.2 As soon as practicable after the members have been sworn in and have taken their seats, the following Standing Committees, except the House of Representatives Legislative Ethics Committee, and the House of Representatives Committee on Operations and Management, shall be appointed with the indicated number of members appointed thereto:
1. Committee on Ways and Means - 25.
2. Committee on the Judiciary (Privileges and Elections) - 25.
3. Committee on Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs (Fish, Game, Forestry, State Parks, Rural Development, Environmental Affairs) - 18.
4. Committee on Education and Public Works (Education, Highways, State House and Grounds, Railroads, Aviation) - 18.
5. Committee on Medical, Military, Public and Municipal Affairs (Medical Affairs, Social Security, Penitentiary, State Hospital, Police Regulations, Military Affairs, Veteran's Affairs) - 18.
6. Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry (Labor, Commerce and Manufacturing, Banking and Insurance, Merchants and Mercantile Affairs) - 18.
7. Committee on Rules - 15.
8. Committee on Interstate Cooperation (membership limited to 5, under 1976 Code, Sec. 1 - 17 - 30) - 5.
9. Committee on Regulations and Administrative Procedures (State Agency Rule Making, SC Code of Laws Section 1-23-10 et seq.) - 13.
10. Committee on Legislative Oversight (Oversight and Review of Government Operations and Accountability, SC Code of Laws Section 2-2-5 et seq.) - 20.
11. House of Representatives Legislative Ethics Committee - 10.
12. Committee on Invitations and Memorial Resolutions (Invitations, Resolutions memorializing the Federal or State Government or any official or agency thereof, sympathy, and congratulatory Resolutions) - 5.
13. Committee on Operations and Management of the House of Representatives (Advisory to the Speaker on personnel, administration and management of facilities, including management of the Blatt Building) - 8.
Each member shall serve on one and only one of the first six Standing Committees listed above. However, a member of these Committees may also serve on any one of the following Committees: Committee on Regulations and Administrative Procedures, Committee on Legislative Oversight, Committee on Rules, Committee on Interstate Cooperation, Committee on Ethics, Committee on Invitations, or Committee on Operations and Management of the House of Representatives. The Speaker, Speaker Pro Tempore, and Clerk shall serve as ex officio members of the Committee on Operations and Management of the House of Representatives but no chairman of any other standing committee shall serve as a member of such committee.
Provided, that a member appointed to the Committee on Ways and Means may not serve more than three consecutive terms on the committee. This limitation applies to members serving on the committee more than three consecutive terms at the time of the next organizational session held after adoption of this provision. Before a member may be reappointed to the committee, they must not have served on the committee for at least two years, and only may be reappointed to the committee to fill a vacancy created as result of the term limits provided in this paragraph or due to a vacancy created due to a member no longer serving in the body.
Provided, that a minimum of two members from each of the first six Standing Committees listed above shall be appointed to the Committee on Regulations and Administrative Procedures.
Provided, that the members of the Committee on Operations and Management of the House of Representatives (advisory to the Speaker on personnel, administration and management of facilities), and the members of the House of Representatives Legislative Ethics Committee, shall be elected by the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, their terms to be coterminous with their respective term of office. The Committee on Operations and Management of the House of Representatives shall consist of eight members. Four members of the committee shall be members of the majority party represented in the House of Representatives and four members shall be members of the minority party represented in the House of Representatives or be nonaffiliated with any party or another party not in the majority. The Chairman of the Committee on Operations and Management of the House shall be one of the four members of the committee from the majority party represented in the House to be elected by the members of the committee. Other officers of the committee are not required to be affiliated with a particular party.
Provided, that the Committee on Education and Public Works shall be deemed to be the Committee on Education, and the Committee on Medical, Military, Public and Municipal Affairs shall be deemed to be the Committee on Military Affairs and the Committee on Medical Affairs, in all cases where the statutes provide for the Chairman of these committees to perform ex officio duties.
Provided, that the Committee on Operations and Management of the House of Representatives with the consent of the Speaker may formulate such policies as it deems advisable relating to House personnel. Such policies shall be distributed to the members and must be adopted by majority vote of the House by House Resolution.
Provided, that except as herein provided neither the Speaker nor Speaker Pro Tempore shall be a member of any of the foregoing Standing Committees.
No member shall be appointed on a committee before he has been sworn in and has taken his seat. Any member who is sworn in after the general announcement of the committee shall, within a few days afterward, be placed by the Speaker on a Standing Committee whose number of members will not thereby be extended beyond the number provided in these rules.
After a committee has been appointed, no addition to it or change shall be made, except to fill a vacancy or to remove a member for conduct unbecoming a member.
Provided, that in filling a vacancy, the assignment of any member may be changed from another committee to fill such vacancy."