By Bob Katzen

Beacon Hill Roll Call tracks the length of time that the House and Senate were in session each week. Many legislators say that legislative sessions are only one aspect of the Legislature’s job and that a lot of important work is done outside of the House and Senate chambers.

They note that their jobs also involve committee work, research, constituent work and other matters that are important to their districts. Critics say that the Legislature does not meet regularly or long enough to debate and vote in public view on the thousands of pieces of legislation that have been filed. They note that the infrequency and brief length of sessions are misguided and lead to irresponsible late-night sessions and a mad rush to act on dozens of bills in the days immediately preceding the end of an annual session.

During the week of April 17-21, the House met for a total of 25 minutes while the Senate met for a total of 35 minutes.

Mon. April 17 No House session
No Senate session

Tues. April 18 House 11:04 a.m. to 11:19 a.m.
Senate 11:10 a.m. to 11:21 a.m.

Wed. April 19 No House session
No Senate session

Thurs. April 20 House 11:03 a.m. to 11:13 a.m.
Senate 11:12 a.m. to 11:36 a.m.

Fri. April 21 No House session
No Senate session