Senate Bill 344, described by sponsors as a targeted fix to a procedural “black hole” revealed in recent litigation, was approved by the Senate Legislative Committee and forwarded to the Senate floor.

Sponsor and committee members said the measure clarifies when a governor's veto or objection is effectual by specifying the delivery method and receipt procedure. “If the governor wants to deliver a bill without approval… the governor shall give it to either the chief clerk of the House or the secretary of the Senate,” committee staff explained, adding that the receiving officer must time-stamp and provide a receipt.

Senator Heyman and other members framed the bill as a corrective after a prior dispute in which courts were asked to intervene because officials and the public could not determine where or when a veto message had been received. “We had a legal black hole that, unfortunately, the judiciary jumped headlong into,” one committee member said; the bill seeks to close that hole by creating an unambiguous receipt process.

Committee discussion noted that the bill does not eliminate other remedies — such as calling a special session — but that it would reduce uncertainty by documenting delivery and the time of receipt when a veto is returned near the end of a session. The committee took a voice vote in executive action; the motion passed and the bill will go to the Senate floor for consideration.