House leaders will work toward keeping legislative committee hearings accessible outside the halls of the State House next year and beyond, setting their sights on a formal “hybrid” model while indicating that emergency rules governing the chamber’s operations will remain in place into January.
With the seat of state government once again open to the public and COVID-19 cases holding at lower levels, the House Reopening Working Group sent an update to representatives late last week outlining the next steps for hearings, tours, building ventilation, and House deliberations.
Several committees have started to host hearings from rooms in the reopened State House, allowing members and guests to participate in-person while generally keeping livestreams available for remote viewers and participants.
“As we look towards next session, the House will work with the Senate to formalize a hybrid hearing model that allows in-person participation at hearings while retaining the benefits of remote access,” the working group wrote in its latest memo, a copy of which Speaker Ronald Mariano’s office provided to the News Service.
In the meantime, House leaders urged committees to keep remote participation possible for hearings but to also permit anyone testifying in-person to physically attend hearings at the State House.
Before COVID-19 hit, most legislative hearings were not broadcast or recorded by state government, limiting participation only to those with the means and availability to travel to Beacon Hill during the workday. The broad usage of livestreamed hearings has opened up access to hearings to many more people.
Senate leaders have not indicated if they are also working on a formal hybrid hearing policy, but Senate President Karen Spilka has touted the increase in public participation due to virtual access options.
Another COVID-era reform will remain in place in the House, too. Both the House and Senate pivoted during the pandemic to allow elected lawmakers to debate and cast votes remotely, and while its long-term fate is still unclear, the House working group said emergency rules authorizing that practice “will remain in place until the end of the 192nd Legislative Session,” which wraps up on Jan. 3, 2023.
As needed, House leaders will adjust the number of division monitors assigned to count up votes cast remotely and oversee logistics.
The House chamber will remain open to lawmakers and guests for the remainder of the 2021-2022 lawmaking session, but any representatives or House employees who did not comply with a COVID-19 vaccine mandate — which dates back to when the building was still shuttered to the public — still are not permitted in the chamber.
The working group said in its Friday update that members, court officers and employees “are still required to be in full compliance” with that policy.
“Masks are no longer required in the Chamber, but the HRWG strongly recommends that Members wear them,” the working group wrote in its Friday message, noting that leaders can reinstate a requirement if needed based on future public health developments. “As a resource, the House Business Office has procured masks for those who choose to wear one. Members should be mindful of those who choose to wear masks and respect individual decisions.”
Four unnamed representatives remain out of compliance with the mandate as of Tuesday, according to Mariano’s office. It’s not known whether those lawmakers are not vaccinated against COVID-19 or instead are vaccinated but refuse to submit proof to the House’s human resources office.
Critics took aim at top House Democrats earlier this month for keeping the mandate in effect even though access to the building itself no longer hinges on COVID-19 vaccination or test status, calling it an illogical move in conflict with rules applied to the general public.
A similar vaccine mandate remains in effect in the Senate, where leaders reported 100% compliance and little pushback. Senate President Karen Spilka’s office said on March 7 that the policy was “currently under review,” and a spokesperson on Tuesday said there was “no update” at this time.
In November, senators extended their chamber’s emergency rules (S 12), which like the House allow for remote voting. The Senate emergency rules are now set to expire on March 31, more than two years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and more than nine months after Gov. Charlie Baker lifted the state of emergency.
Lawmakers are 14 months deep into the two-year lawmaking session without a package of joint rules governing joint committee operations. The Legislature adopted the 2019-2020 joint rules as a placeholder at the start of the 2021-2022 lawmaking session, and each branch approved its own version, but the conference committee tasked with resolving differences never got beyond a limited agreement and has lost two of its six members to resignations.
Asked if lawmakers should expect the temporary joint rules to remain in place until the next two-year session begins, a Mariano spokesperson did not answer directly and referred back to the working group’s memo.
To cut down on the risk of COVID-19 transmission, the House working group on Friday also suggested all representatives and staff “keep any windows located near their workstations open during normal business hours” and close windows at the end of their workdays.
“Audits in House controlled spaces will be performed regularly to confirm that the ventilation practices are working as intended,” the working group said.
The Bureau of the State House will continue to use 13 minimum efficiency reporting value, or MERV, air filters in new equipment installed during a 2020 upgrade project, according to the working group.