House Speaker Clay Schexnayder’s Opening Statement for the 2022 Extraordinary Session
Published 7:40 am Thursday, June 16, 2022
- Clay Schexnayder
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“Good afternoon Members and thank you all for being back here so unexpectedly and so soon after we completed our very successful Regular Session.
As I’ve said, this Special Session is premature and unnecessary until the legal process has played out in the court system. But, based on a federal judge and a call into this Special Session by the Governor, here we are.
We are grateful for the hard work of our Governmental Affairs Committees during this year. They traveled the entire state and held meetings after work hours so that the public could participate as much as possible in the process.
They even allowed those meetings to go long into the night in order that everyone who wanted to, could be heard. Those committees did everything they could to make sure the process was fair, transparent, and open to all the citizens of this state.
Members, the maps we passed after all that hard work are fair and constitutional. It concerns me that we are now being asked to redo in just 5 days, something that was passed by over 2/3 of both bodies after a very long year of work.
But, we are here and will do our best, as we always do, over these next few days to make sure voices are heard as this process continues to play out. I respect the legal process and know how complicated redistricting law is. I view this Special Session as one continuing step in this long process.
I am going to ask you to support suspending the rules today to allow us to refer the bills to committee that will be introduced in a few minutes so that H&GA can begin its committee work Friday to hear whatever bills are filed today, that will give all of you and the public time to review the bills.”
