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The twice-yearly procedure releases hundreds of bills to the Senate and Assembly floors, allowing for debate before the entire chamber. But for other bills, the suspense hearing provides a quiet, anticlimactic end.
Understanding How A California Bill Dies Without Public Debate Calif. Capitol Senate chambers on Sept. 14, 2011. Andrew Nixon / CapRadio On Thursday, scores of bills in the California Legislature were killed without public debate. It's part of a twice-yearly procedure known as the suspense file hearing. The process releases hundreds of bills to the Senate and Assembly floors, where they can go up for debate before the entire chamber of lawmakers. But for other bills, the suspense hearing provides a quiet, anticlimactic end that often leaves the bill authors and the groups who care about t...