This past week was a busy one as the General Assembly hit the Day 30 mark, also known as "Crossover day." This is the day by which bills must pass their chamber of origin (and crossover to the other chamber) in order to remain alive for the session.
 
Many bills died, at least until next session, by failing to make it to the floor for a vote by Crossover day. Surprisingly, Senator Eric Johnson's universal voucher bill is one of these "dead" bills. Of course, there is always the chance that legislators will attach a "dead" bill to another bill or use other parliamentary procedures to keep a bill alive during the last days of the session.
 
Each chamber managed to pass a fair number of pieces of legislation during the hectic week, including some bills of interest to afterschool advocates. Parents and afterschool educators should watch HB 193, which easily passed the House. It would allow school districts to adjust their calendars to meet the equivalent of 180 days of instruction. For example, school systems could move to longer days but only a 4-day school week. The BRIDGE bill, which seeks to improve graduation rates by allowing focused programs of study in high-demand fields, also passed the House with little opposition. Finally, both chambers passed bills to reorganize the Department of Human Resources (HB 228 and SB 222). The GAIC Legislative Tracking section below provides a list of all bills of interest to afterschool advocates that are still alive this session.