There are just three bills left that Gov. Butch Otter is considering possibly vetoing, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Winder told the Senate this morning. “It sounds like we’ll have a decision fairly early afternoon, so I’m going to ask that we come back on the floor at 1:30. If we’re real lucky, we can sine die before he House even comes on the floor. So that’s the plan today – this is our last day.”

Winder said the three bills are the trespassing bill, the non-compete bill, and the charter school administrator certificate bill. The House isn't scheduled to convene until 3 this afternoon.

There are other bills the governor still is signing, Winder said, and he’s planning to let one Senate bill, SB 1375, an appropriation bill regarding continuing interim committees, become law without his signature. Winder, who met with Otter’s chief of staff this morning before the Senate convened, said, “There are three bills he’s still questioning, and they’re going to have some discussions, hopefully make some final decisions during the noon hour today.”

If none of the three are vetoed, Winder said, the Senate could wrap up and adjourn for the year after it comes back on the floor at 1:30. If there are vetoes, it could take longer. Two of the three bills – the trespass bill and the charter school administrator bill – are House bills, and the non-compete bill is a Senate bill. The house in which the bill originated is the one that would decide whether to attempt an override of a veto; if that were successful, reaching a two-thirds vote, that would then go to the other house.

Winder said he believes whatever will happen can happen fairly quickly. “There’s no reason for us to stay beyond late afternoon today,” he said.

---

---