What a difference 118 days makes.
Everyone knew last November, after Colorado Democrats won a majority of legislative seats, that the 2005 session would be different.
Although there are a few people who remember the last time this occurred, in 1962, most of the regulars at the Capitol – legislators, staff and lobbyists – have noticed some very distinct changes during the past four months. They have ranged from the routine – complete upheaval in office spaces and turnover in staff at the beginning of the session – to substantive but subtle differences involving the personalities, alliances and the way business at the Capitol was handled by a party that had not held the majority in both houses since John F. Kennedy was president.
Joan Fitz-Gerald took on the mantle of being the first woman president of the Colorado Senate and did it with grace and style. Fitz-Gerald had been the minority leader for two years and was the proverbial thorn in the side of the Republicans. She was partisan, strident and obstinate. That was what she believed the role called for. But as president, her role was to protect the institution and the process – for both parties.
Another example of personal role reversal was seen in the House. Republican Minority Leader Joe Stengel became the tough guy who constantly lashed out at the ineptitude of the majority party. No longer was he the joking, affable nice guy – he had a new role to play.
Democratic House Speaker Andrew Romanoff was committed to finding a TABOR solution and staked his reputation on achieving this goal. Lucky for him, colleagues on both sides of the aisle decided it was in everyone’s best interest to help him find the right answer. Romanoff also exhibited a quick wit often combined with a deadpan delivery of one-liners from the chair. The levity was greatly needed and appreciated by those inside and outside of the glass. (Glass windows separate the legislative chambers from the lobby area, which is inhabited by a cadre of lobbyists who seek to influence legislation.)
The least changed individual in the leadership ranks was Senate Minority Leader Mark Hillman, who performed his new partisan role with less rancor than his House counterpart.
In preparation for their ascension to the majority, the Democrats made a Herculean effort to prepare their ranks for the job of running committees.
In 2000, when Democrats had a majority only in the Senate, there were several instances when committee chairs were less than comfortable and sometimes baffled by the requirements of conducting business and taking testimony. This year, much effort was expended to make sure that the orientation and training of the new majority prepared them to run committees as if they were seasoned chairs. This was true of even novice Rep. Kathleen Curry, who chaired the House Agriculture Committee and shepherded a number of contentious water bills.
Regardless of which party is in the majority, there is always grumbling about how committees are run and whether too much time is allowed for public testimony. When it comes to the inclusion of the governed in the process of government, it is always wise to give them too much time as opposed to too little, even it means late evenings and missed meals. The Democrats were sensitive to the criticisms they had voiced in past sessions.
Life in the legislature in many ways is similar to your school experiences. For 16 years, I taught secondary students in my native state of Texas. I often tell people that dealing with 150 12-year-olds every day will prepare you for any circumstance, especially being a lobbyist. The legislature, like a school, has its cliques, class clowns, the best-dressed and the quiet, studious types.
This year, the new clique was the environmentalists – or the “enviros,” as they are often called by friend and foe. Their ranks seemed to increase at the Capitol and many of their past opponents were scurrying to find a way to convince the enviros that their causes were served by one piece of legislation or another.
To a lesser extent, the labor unions and the teachers’ association enjoyed greater status during the past session.
Some cliques in the lobby corps seemed to have discovered new friends on the Democratic side of the aisle, while Republican legislators commented that they were not getting as many invitations for dinner or lunch as in previous years.
As in high school, popularity can be a fickle friend.
Regardless of which party is in the majority, Sen. Ken Kester and Sen. Ed Jones were still the class clowns. Sen. Bob Hagedorn remained the overachiever who must be constantly challenged and kept busy or will get into mischief. And Sen. Dave Owen was still the prankster, writing captions under newspaper pictures of his fellow senators and leaving them on their desks.
The pace of business at the Capitol was a little different this year. Fewer bills were introduced than in past years. Fewer bills were introduced in the last month of the session, and the sponsors of “late” bills were from both parties. Gov. Bill Owens has directed his veto pen at legislators of both parties.
Finally, the fact that the legislature ended two days before the constitutionally mandated limit of 120 days marks a real break from the past. Usually the session goes right down to the stroke of midnight. Some of us remember the year when Sen. Jeff Wells was stalling bills in the Senate to force the majority leader in the House, Rep. Norma Anderson, into dealing with certain bills. Anderson simply called his bluff, and the House adjourned at 10:30 p.m.
But this year, a push was on to finish up all work on Friday, May 6. When that didn’t happen, the new goal was Monday, May 9, two days early. The early out seemed to be the brainchild of Senate Majority Leader Ken Gordon, who at times seemed obsessed with the idea to the point that tempers flared and arguments were frequent under the pressure of sprinting to the finish line early.
Reaching the goal did make the point that it could be done and that, just because the legislature has 120 days to do its business, it doesn’t mean it has to take all that time.
One thing that didn’t change this year was the tactics used by legislators in their efforts to further future election advantage of one party over the other. During debate, the campaign themes of each of the parties were constantly evoked. Recorded votes were taken on a variety of issues in preparation for the next election – and for future campaign advertisements. This is always an undercurrent of the legislative process, but this year proposals of the far right that made it to the floor in recent years were killed in committee, and the ideas of the liberal left were more successful than in past years.
(As a footnote, even the annual “Hummers” show, the skits spoofing the majority by the minority party on the last day of the session, also provided an example of change. House Republicans hadn’t had the experience of putting on this show before, and the enthusiasm exhibited by some of the more conservative members was a stitch.)
The most important recent change in the legislature has been dictated not by which party is in control, but by the consequences of term limits, which went into effect for the elections of 1998.
Over the past 19 sessions that I’ve witnessed at the Capitol, the institutional memory has been preserved by veteran lawmakers such as Senators Owen and Anderson. After next year’s session, both will be gone because of term limits. Although the legislative process always is energized by new faces and new ideas, old-guard lawmakers have been a tempering influence. That is changing, and the long-term memory and experience is coming to rest with only the lobbying corps and the legislative staff.
Still, one of the great things about our democratic form of government is its resiliency. Just when we believe it will damaged by a change in power or by the inexperience of new participants, it seems to bounce back and become stronger than ever. Ultimately, it’s the structure of our institutions that are important, more so than the changing personalities, variety of ideas and the entertainment value they provide.
Becky Brooks is president of Stealey II Inc., a lobbying and political consulting firm, and has worked at the
statehouse since 1987.
