To be effective and competent at the Legislature, legislators and their staff need time to gather knowledge, analyze it, understand it, and then learn how others see and understand. But because of the way the Legislature organizes its schedule, this seemingly thoughtful process is impaired by the too-rapid arrival of “first lateral.”

First lateral — when all bills must go to their final committee — dampens democracy. This early internal deadline means there are fewer opportunities and time to have candid, respectful discussions and explorations of alternatives with colleagues and the public in private. It leaves most legislators writing resolutions and observing the big issues from the sidelines.

Later, after bills cross over from one chamber to the other, there is a second lateral deadline, which is equally problematic.

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Why is first lateral so important? In the Legislature, it constrains the work of the subject matter committees.

A subject matter committee — education, health, agriculture, the environment, tourism, transportation, etc. — is the place where time, focus and expertise can better ensure that legislators can assist and inform their colleagues and the general public on specific topics. If you inhibit their abilities you essentially dumb down this effort.

A bill with multiple committee referrals has to move even sooner. In the end, many end up in the centers of real power: the judiciary, consumer protection and budget committees.

In less than one month, the chairs of Senate Ways and Means and House Finance committees have already captured a huge number of complex and controversial issues, and all the money.

In addition, virtually every other member of the House and Senate is begging those chairs to include their pet projects in the state budget.

Already this year, the overwhelming number of legislators have, in essence, had their power diluted. Time to turn that dead bill into a resolution!

Other Factors At Play

Once the Legislature convenes in mid-January, there is a flurry of intense activity and a lot of dynamics at play. For example, there are many new staff that need to learn their jobs, their committee kuleana, and the desires of their boss.

Turnover, especially after an election, can be significant. Factions and aspirations reshuffle committee chairs and members. This enhances the power and expertise of seasoned senators and representatives, and of longer-term committee chairs.

Second, there is a whirlwind of drafting, introducing and refining of bills to be introduced. Turnover at the Legislative Reference Bureau and other agencies can undercut known and comfortable expertise in this process.

There is also a limit on how many bills can be introduced. And this deadline also comes early in session.

A bill is an idea. Thus, there is a limit on how a legislator can respond to lobbyists and constituents. The longer-serving lawmakers already have a bucket list of tested ideas. A newly elected lawmaker has a steep learning curve.

Third, opportunities during the legislative day for meeting or chatting or developing relationships with other legislators is shrinking.

It used to be fundraisers during the session, while now viewed as semi-corrupt, were important ways for legislators and their supporters and voters and lobbyists to speak with each other. For a mere $25 any member of the public could buttonhole a whole slew of department reps, senators, fellow nonprofits — yes, the entire Capitol community.

Many have the impression that this happens during the day. Not so. Hearings gobble up all the free time as well as meetings or even talking to kids in the gallery.

But the powerful get daytime meetings. The powerful have already secured relationships. Now, meetings are less public, and not at a fundraiser. It’s a more private affair.

The Importance Of Time

Why do you need time to understand how to be effective at the Legislature? It helps to know the megatrends that influence all seemingly unrelated silos. It involves the transition from large and bureaucratic Industrial Age organization, from specialization to Information Age fragmentation and decentralization. That includes multiple information sources for news, AI, entertainment and living in cultural bubbles.

Amid all this, legislators need time to read and reread the statutes and administrative regulations. Too few legislators take the time to thoroughly reread the laws. They often rely on biased department folks or lobbyists.

If a lawmaker is new to a subject matter committee, or newly elected, they do not enter the session with a full tool box of power or influence.

Of course, this is a bit of an exaggeration. No one wants to admit their weakened influence. But that’s largely true.

In our enthusiasm to “reduce” the “too many bills for the public to follow,” or the perceived corruption of a mid-session fundraiser, or insisting that committees vote in public on a bill they do not have in front of them, we have diminished efforts to democratically make better policy — and to share power.

Maybe we need to pay more attention to the so-called internal legislative schedule created by the Senate president, the House speaker and others who already have power.